


Metro Tones

by skygummi



Category: Splatoon
Genre: Amnesia, Angst, F/F, Fluff, Found Family, Friends to Lovers, Mind Control, Nonbinary Protagonist, Octo Expansion DLC, Pearlina (background) (like. very background), there's also an Agent 9, trans protagonist
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-20
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-01 05:07:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 67,609
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23489581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skygummi/pseuds/skygummi
Summary: Lace just wants nothing more than to figure out who she is and what's going on. An awful case of amnesia leaves her with far too many questions for comfort. Things become even more complicated than they already were when she's joined by a partially-sanitized octoling and an inkling who remembers her past better than she does.Figuring out the missing pieces of herself will not be a quick or easy task—especially once complicated feelings begin to arise along the way.
Relationships: Agent 3/Agent 8 (Splatoon)
Comments: 75
Kudos: 86





	1. Forgotten Memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Couple things of note. This story is based on Splatoon's Octo Expansion DLC, but with my own take of events by pushing my OCs into it. There aren't teeeechnically any large spoilers for the DLC for a long time coming, but tbh you will probably be super confused if you haven't played and it's so different from the actual DLC I'd recommend having at least finished the ending before reading this. 
> 
> That said, I won't stop you if you really want to read anyhow because it's a paid DLC expansion and a hard one at that lmao. Also, the T-rating is for some swearing as well as some fight scenes/injuries, and things that may be potentially upsetting will be warned for at the beginning of a chapter, when applicable.

  
Amazing cover art by the equally amazing [RecedingTides](https://twitter.com/RecedingTides) on Twitter!

* * *

  
Sybil came to her senses and everything was far too sore. She rose into a sitting position with a groan, pain protesting every move. Rubbing her eyes to adjust to the low-lighting, she looked around the room. Rubble took up a large portion of the small room she found herself in. It seemed to come from the ceiling, which had large cracks that looked like they could crumble at any moment. She looked to the other side of the room, and—

_Oh cod. Lace._

Sybil hastily moved towards her, turning the octoling to be laying on her back rather than her face. Lace is still breathing, so she is _thankfully_ not dead. Sybil sits on the floor by her side, hand reaching out to touch her cheek in the hopes of waking her. 

“Hey… wake up, Lace.” No response. “C’mon, Lacey. Get up.” Still hearing nothing, panic began to rise in Sybil’s chest. She shook her face lightly, voice breaking and becoming uneasy. “Wake up!”

Lace stirred after a moment and opened her eyes. Sybil released a breath she didn’t know she was holding and her hand moved to hold Lace’s. “Are you okay?” Sybil asked. The octoling looked… sleepy, mostly, though her expression changed and she knocked Sybil’s hand away.

“Who are _you_?” Sybil drew back as she heard this, confused. _Is this a prank...?_ “Ugh, whatever.” Lace stood up and looked around for a brief moment before walking out the door of the room, leaving Sybil stunned on the floor and scrambling to her feet to follow after her. Sybil kept a slight distance, unsure of what to do in this situation. This wasn’t a joke, was it? Sure, Lace had begun to open up and be a little sillier around her, but this doesn’t feel like Lace being silly. The octoling walking ahead of her had a completely different attitude now, and she barely paid any attention to her.

She tapped her headset to see if she could reach the captain or the other agents — to call for backup, to be rescued, even just to let the others know that she's okay — but all she was greeted with was static. Sighing, she tapped the headset once more.

_This is awful,_ Sybil thought as she trailed after Lace. Normally Lace was more than happy to see her, and the feeling was definitely mutual, but now… 

Now, she’s storming forward, keeping a brisk pace while avoiding looking in her direction and not speaking at all. Sybil pulled out her phone and checked it, unsurprisingly having no reception. _Yeah. This is like, really incredibly awful. Lost who knows where, no weapons, Lace is acting weird. Nothing is coming through my headset, and my phone has no reception, because why would it? This is just_ perfect _, really._

At the least, it’s still functional, and she now knew it was about two in the afternoon. The battery is low though, and she doesn’t have the charger on her. With an exhale backed by annoyance, she pocketed her phone for now.

As they walked, Sybil spared a moment to look around the halls of the place they were in. The more she looked at their surroundings the more uneasy she felt. All these empty glass boxes were unsettling. Speakers could be occasionally found on the cold, metallic walls, and occasionally they’d pass rooms containing large containers of a bright neon substance. Sybil couldn’t shake the feeling that this place was _bad news_. They definitely shouldn’t be here.

Her train of thought was cut off by Lace turning to face her, a movement so swift that Sybil stumbled over herself trying to stop without bumping into the taller octoling. Her eyes bored into Sybil’s with such an intense glare that she felt like she might shrink into herself. “Why are you _still_ following me? What do you _want_?”

Hearing such an edge behind these words made her immensely uncomfortable. Sybil’s head ducked to look at the floor, not able to handle the face Lace was currently making. “Lace, I just—”

“Do not make up names for me, _squid_.” Sybil’s body felt cold suddenly, as if the severity of the situation was setting in. _She really doesn’t remember who she is. Or who I am._

Gaze still averted, she spoke up despite herself. “It’s—I’m not making it up, that’s your name. _Your_ name, the name you picked for yourself on the surface. You’re my friend, I wouldn’t make that up.”

“I don't have a name.” She spoke plainly, as if it were obvious. Her brow furrowed for a moment as she blinked, as if she were unsure now that the words left her mouth. “I couldn’t have, or I’d remember if I had one—”

“But you did!” Sybil shouted, a bit louder than intended. She looked up to face Lace now, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach as she looked up at her. After making a mental note to lower her speaking volume she continued, “Up there, we were friends. You came to me, I assumed you were trying to attack me, you said you wanted to know about the surface, we grew close and had fun together. You don’t remember?” Sybil looked closely at the octoling, trying to search her face for any sign of recollection.

Lace looked more confused than anything else, but her eyes were still sharp and steady, likely considering all of this information carefully. “You’re lying,” she said finally, staring Sybil down. She wanted to say something, _anything_ to fix this. She opened her mouth to speak, but her words were caught in her throat as she saw movement down the hallway ahead of them. Lace picked up on this and turned her head to look over her shoulder.

An octotrooper was roaming the halls, piloting a small vehicle underneath it, but it looked… wrong. The Octarians weren’t normally green and blue, right? Sybil was more than familiar with Octarians by this point, but whatever this was was something different. Even if this were a normal Octarian, she was completely unarmed and without a way to call for help. A horrifying, sick feeling came upon her, and she grabbed Lace’s hand in panic and started to pull her away.

“Hey! What are you—”

“We have to go. _Now_.” Sybil continued to pull without waiting for an answer, leading a reluctant octoling following close behind her as they ran down the halls.

* * *

After being dragged a far enough distance away, the inkling pulling her around finally let go of her hand, audibly sighing as her head fell downwards. "There. I think we're far enough away now, assuming there’s no more on the lookout for us now." Her voice was quiet, almost strained.

Lace—should she really believe that that's her name?—took a moment to survey their current location. The two of them stood in a plain, mostly barren supply closet. Despite the emptiness it was startlingly clean and pristine, a trait that Lace didn’t particularly find inviting.

There was only one exit as far as she could discern, and the inkling was leaning against it and breathing heavily. Normally she would have assumed this was to prevent her from leaving, but her form was mostly slack, head facing towards the floor. Not much else of interest was in this room as far as Lace could tell, and there didn’t seem to be any immediate danger, so Lace decided it wasn’t a bad time to get more information.

Lace pinned the inkling to the wall, hand pressed firmly against the other girl’s chest, quick enough to catch her while her guard was down. Though Lace was sure not to use enough force to cause any pain, she still flinched and gasped from the sudden action.

"Explain yourself. Who are you? Where are we? How do you know me?”

“Syb—” she wheezed, hands reaching to grab Lace’s arm in an attempt to remove her hand from her chest. “Can’t breathe.”

Lace cautiously released her hold on the inkling and watched her carefully to make sure this wasn’t a trick. The amount of coughing and wheezing seemed to show otherwise, and Lace felt a twinge of guilt for a moment before pushing that feeling away. She hadn’t pushed her that hard, had she?

“My name,” she started once more, having regained her breath, “my name is Sybil, in case you didn’t catch it. You should know that, though—”

“And I didn’t,” Lace shot back, quickly. “Whatever things I’m _apparently_ supposed to remember, I don’t. So I’d appreciate it if you’d stop with that already and answer the rest of my questions.”

The inkling, _Sybil_ , shifted uncomfortably on her feet and began fiddling with something on her finger. _A ring? What is that for?_ Sybil’s gaze lowered.

“I don’t know where we are.” Sybil stifled a cough before continuing, “I know where we _were_ , though. A place called Octo Valley, I think? I’m not actually sure if that’s the official name but that’s what the captain called it, oh cod wait where’s the captain—”

“Okay, fine.” Lace interjected, growing impatient. “Next question. How do you know me?”

“Um. I explained it earlier, but…” Sybil fidgeted with her hands, eyes directed towards the ground. “We met in Octo Valley, I actually assumed you were going to attack me at first, but you mostly seemed curious? We were actually pretty good friends.”

“I still don’t believe you on that.” Lace noticed Sybil about to say something and spoke before she could. “Whatever. Fine. Let’s just focus on getting out of wherever this is.”

Sybil nodded and turned to open the door, leading the two of them out of the small closet. The two started walking once again, with a much more leisurely pace this time, and Lace thought over all she knew slowly.

She decided that she had to be lying. If she hadn’t been, that makes this situation more obnoxious, and it was already pretty annoying. So it was easier to decide that Sybil was lying to her. She couldn’t deny that she didn’t remember much, though — or really anything at all. _‘Inklings are bad’_ felt like an instinct, a simple irrefutable fact. Lace couldn’t remember why, but there was surely a reason, right?

And yet, the inkling in front of her addressed her so easily. Called her a friend over and over, told her the name she apparently couldn’t remember.

That inkling, Sybil, was supposedly someone she knew—

The sound of running broke her concentration and the two of them stopped. Sybil raised an arm out in front of Lace defensively—as if she needed that, what did this squid think she would be achieving with that?

From around the corner a figure appeared and made a sharp turn in their direction, and Lace recognized them quickly as another octoling. Once said octoling saw the two of them, their movements came to a quick and dramatic halt in front of them as they tried to stop before colliding with the two of them.

Once they moved closer, Lace couldn't help but notice their face. A large section of it was a vibrant green-ish color, and their left eye was almost completely black. The only part of the eye that wasn’t black is a glowing blue circle.

“Whoa! You two look fine!” they said, surprise very evident on their face as they looked back and forth between the two.

Sybil blinked. “Uh, what—”

“Like, neither of you are green and blue!” They unhelpfully elaborated, interrupting the inkling. “That’s a relief, everyone here looks like that and my dad always said that _green and blue is bad on you_ , and I never really knew what that meant until now, though I’m still not sure I get it honestly, and now I think they’re all mad at me, and—”

“Wait, wait, hold on. Uh, your face…” Surely that meant Sybil had noticed too, then.

Down the hallway behind the energetic octoling, Sybil and Lace could see a vibrant green ink shooting out from the hallway. Tide heard this and threw their hands up, seeming to remember the situation they were in.

“Oh right! Yeah, we gotta go! Uh, you might not want to go that way, obviously. This way!” Running past the two of them, Lace exchanged a brief glance with Sybil before they both decided to follow after them. _This is probably our best option right now,_ Lace thought as the two followed after them.

* * *

All things considered, Lace will call it a victory that the three of them thankfully aren’t _dead_. When she started considering the other people in this situation _at all_ was beyond her, but here she was anyway, being the smallest bit thankful that her companions weren’t crushed under the rubble that fell along with them, pulling them further down... _wherever_ they are. The younger octoling that brought them here sprung up to their feet before Lace had even processed that they were on the ground to begin with, seemingly unharmed.

“Oookay, alright, so, maybe that wasn’t the most stable part of the building ever, but I have good news. We’re officially back in the metro? I think?”

Lace turned her attention toward Sybil. She appeared relatively unharmed — her expression made her seem alert and wide-awake, possibly just dazed? — though she remained with her back on the ground as she stared upward. Stepping over bits of crumbled concrete, Lace made her way over to the inkling and extended a hand to help her up.

“And where exactly were we before? What is the metro, and what about our location makes us _officially there_ ?” Lace asked. Sybil hesitantly took her hand and winced a bit as Lace pulled her upwards. _Was she hurt by the fall…?_

“Hmm. Those are some great questions.” Tide paced for a moment, seemingly lost in thought, until they continued to walk a bit ahead of them once more.

Lace waited a bit longer before pressing it further, “Are you going to answer them?”

“Answer what again? Oh right, so sorry, I almost forgot! Hi, I’m Tide!” They spun around with a flourish and gave a mock salute while posing. Lace has no idea where this octoling came from, but they’re nothing like her at all.

“That wasn’t what I asked.”

“Well, that’s the question I’m answering because I forgot the other ones. And you two are…” Tide’s eyes glanced downward slightly, and it doesn’t take long for Lace to realize why.

She hadn’t let go of Sybil’s hand after helping her up. She guessed Sybil realized too, because in the two seconds too long it took for Lace to process this, Sybil’s hand jerked away from hers. Lace looked over still, watching Sybil wring her hands together, seeing the inkling look away once more.

Tide glanced between them. “Okay, definitely just saw that. You two are kinda weird. Can I have your names, at least, so I know what you weird people are called?”

“Sybil,” she said, barely audible but loud enough to hear. Tide nodded and looked towards Lace expectantly.

“Uh… Lace. I guess. I don’t know? I don’t remember.”

“You don’t remember?"

“No. I don’t remember anything about myself or what happened before we fell down here.”

“Hmm…” Tide lifted a hand to their face, covering their mouth as they paced once again in small circles. “We should definitely get you to the metro, then.”

“Why? What is the metro?”

“You’ll see. Follow me.” Sybil looked over to Lace, looking back once she noticed Lace’s head turning to face her. The two follow after Tide. The ground crunched under them as the three of them stepped over the gravelly walkways. It wasn't long before Sybil broke the silence.

“Hey… um, Tide?”

They turned around to face her, continuing while walking backwards. “Yeah?”

“Er…” Sybil fidgeted with her ring again. A nervous habit, Lace had begun to guess. “What was that you said about green and blue, earlier?”

“Oh, that? That was a thing my dad always said. He always warned me about it with that really weird phrase. I still don’t entirely get it or what it means. He was always kinda weird.”

“I see. Because, uh…” Sybil’s voice died then, unwilling to address the whale in the room.

“Because some of your face and tentacles _are_ green and blue.” Lace stepped in, keeping an even tone as she spoke.

Tide stopped their walking then, nearly tripping over their own feet. “What?” The panic was evident in their voice as they started touching their face and tentacles. “Where? You’re not messing with me, are you? Where is it?”

“Uh. Here,” Sybil pulled her phone out of her pocket and opened the camera app. She changed the mode to the front camera and handed it to Tide. Tide took it and their eyes widened, left hand reaching for the left side of their face, fingers running over the discolored splotch over their face.

“Ah, even my eye is…” Tide inhaled and exhaled shakily and handed the phone back to Sybil.

“Are you uh, okay?” Sybil asked carefully, taking the phone back and pocketing it.

“I… I mean, I feel fine? Though, I really, really don’t like knowing that. I don’t even know what that could do to me.”

“You were bound to find out eventually.” Lace reasoned. Tide nodded, hugging herself.

“No, yeah, I know. Better to rip the bandage off, I guess.” Tide stood still, looking very unsettled. Lace can’t help but feel like she made the situation worse for them by being blunt, though it’s not like the conversation was going anywhere with Sybil’s hesitancy. Thinking on it more, Sybil did drag her away when they saw something earlier. She wasn't given much time to look before being led away, but she distinctly remembered the blue color of whatever Sybil wanted to get away from.

"What happened down there, anyway? You were running earlier, was that related to...?" Sybil poked her own face while looking at Tide and the octoling sighed.

"Yeah. I guess so. I don't know if I want to talk about it."

“That's fair. Uhh… here. Do you want a hug?” Sybil opened her arms and Tide looked up at her, then walked forward to accept, wrapping their arms around her. _These two are both strange,_ Lace decided. She tapped her foot as the two shared a brief hug.

“Thanks, I think I feel a bit better,” Tide backed away and sighed. “I mean, I don’t feel that different from normal, I can still remember things, I feel physically fine, so I guess I’m good?”

“That’s the spirit. Let’s keep going, yeah? Lead the way.” Tide seemed to perk up at the invitation to lead the charge and turned once more to walk forward. Sybil smiled, seeming content with having helped the younger octoling. She turned towards Lace and the two locked eyes, Sybil’s expression falling into something more pained and sad. Turning her gaze away and continuing her walk behind Tide, Lace followed after a moment more.

_Why does she look so sad when she looks at me? Do we really have some kind of history together?_ Frustration rising in her again, Lace pinched her temple as she thought about this. She wished she could remember something, _anything,_ just to have even the slightest bit of information to work with. At first, she had assumed what Sybil had told her had been meant to deceive her. The closer Lace observed her mannerisms and actions, though, the less she believed that.

This inkling, who informed her of the name she couldn’t even remember, who trailed after her and led her away from danger, who stood protectively in front of her, who was so nervous to talk to someone kind but unfamiliar while being completely up front with her despite being nothing but stand-offish to the nervous inkling at _best_. Lace is really starting to doubt that she had any malicious intent. Actually, she didn’t think that this girl was even capable of doing any harm.

_And the way she looks at me like that…_ Lace hated to admit it, but it was making her feel incredibly guilty and uneasy. _If she’s really not lying, I’m the reason she looks so sad._

She continued forward and decided to think about it another time. _For now, seeing where this strange octoling is taking us is enough._ Tide continued to lead the way, and Lace began to wonder if they actually knew where they’re going when Tide opened a door and stepped through, leading Sybil and Lace through to what seems to be a large train platform.

_The door we stepped through doesn’t seem like the proper entrance into an area like this. Were those maintenance tunnels?_

“Captain!” Lace’s concentration was broken by Sybil’s voice echoing through the open station platform. Lace turned in time to see Sybil breaking into a sprint followed by a large leap to the center of the station. _Well, I thought earlier she might have been hurt, but after a jump like that, she’s probably fine,_ Lace thought. She seemed to be running towards an old-looking man who was standing out in the open. He turned towards the running inkling and lifted a shaky hand.

Tide and Lace remained where they were by the maintenance door. The two of them saw the man’s head turn towards them and he seemed shocked. He lifted his cane up in their direction, and Lace noticed Tide shuffled to stand behind her.

Sybil placed one hand on his cane and slowly pushed it downwards, the other hand raised in front of him. Once he seemed calmer, she turned to face the two of them once more and waved them over. Lace stood there a moment more, considering whether or not this is a good idea. Sybil seemed to know him, though, and he looked too old to be capable of doing any harm that she couldn’t handle.

Lace looked down the tunnels to ensure there’s no train coming—something Sybil notably didn’t do despite this _very clearly_ being a train station—and leapt across to the other side. She turned to see Tide looking back towards her with a strange expression, though it didn’t seem to be a negative one, at least. 

The smaller octoling took a few steps forward and checked both ways, as they should, before leaping over to the other side. Their balance was a little off when they landed, wobbling and having to straighten out to remain standing, but they smiled wide as they bounced forward to join Lace. Lace gave her own half-hearted smirk in return and the two walked to greet the inklings waiting for them.

“Captain, this is Lace and Tide,” Sybil motioned to each of them as she said their names. “Lace and Tide, Captain Cuttlefish.” Lace examined him as Tide waved back. Even from afar he seemed old, but being this close made it all the more evident. “They’re friends, we can trust them.”

“Just call me Cap’n. So friends, huh? Even though they’re Octarians?” He spoke with a gruff voice and he squinted, large eyes glancing over the two of them. He lifted a hand to his beard and continued, “Well, this one looks nice enough, if not kinda weird. Yer the one called Tide?”

“Yeah, that’s me.” She gave him a peace sign, and though his mouth wasn’t visible his eyes showed the hint of a smile in response.

“And this one,” he directed his gaze towards Lace, his cane poking at her ankles, “she looks like she’s irritated, or up to something. I don’t think I trust her.”

“What?” Lace wasn’t irritated before, though now she’s starting to feel like she ought to be.

“That’s just how she looks normally. I doubt she’s up to anything anyway, because I’ve been with her since we all fell in, and she can’t remember a thing.”

Cap’n’s eyes narrowed and he turned to face Sybil, cane now poking her stomach. “That’s how she looks normally, you say? And how would you know that, Agent 3?”

“Ow—uh, well…” Sybil fidgeted with the ring on her finger again as she looked around, “I may have… uh, I _maaay_ have met her on the surface after the first fight with DJ Octavio and uh. Befriended her?”

“And my protégé didn’t think it would be important to inform her captain about something so significant like _befriending an octoling_?” Sybil looked at him guiltily as he jabbed her stomach again.

“Ah—ask for forgiveness, not permission?” She said with a shrug and a grin. Cap’n lowered his cane to the ground to maintain his balance.

“Hmph.” Was he pouting? “We can _and will_ talk about this later. For now, if you say these two are friends, I will trust in your judgement.”

The conversation was brought to an end when the group heard ringing from a distance. It reverberated and echoed through the mostly empty station.

“Oh yeah, right, come this way,” Tide motioned for Lace to follow, turning towards the strange machine—a telephone?—in the middle of the platform. Lace followed after them and she heard the footsteps and idle chatter of the inklings behind her.

Tide stepped up to the telephone and poked the metal casing. “Hellooo?”

The old-fashioned telephone emitted some statements in a barely audible, highly robotic tone. “Searching for User ID… User 9-9-9-9 confirmed. Searching for User ID… No User ID associated with the identified entity. Registering as User 1-0-0-0-8.“ _Is that referring to us?_ Lace wondered, eyes narrowing as she looked down at the thing in front of her.

“Greetings and welcome back, 9,999. Greetings, new user 10,008.” It spoke up again, louder now, and with more inflection than Lace would have expected a telephone to have. Which is to say she would expect none, because telephones don’t typically talk.

"My primary function is to facilitate your journey to the promised land. I am pleased to make your acquaintance."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm very excited to say that I've decided to write a story featuring some OCs! Updates will be sporadic, but I hope you all look forward to them anyway. I love these three so much and I can't wait to share more about them.
> 
> As a quick note, Tide uses she/her and they/them pronouns. For the sake of being addressed by the narrative I'll be using they/them, but other characters may use one or the other or possibly even switch it up. I'll try not to make it confusing, but they use both pronouns so I wanted to have both present. Feel free to refer to them with either as well!
> 
> And here's a big shoutout to my friends (including my girlfriend!) for being wonderful and listening in on all my OC ramblings and thoughts as I've pieced together this story and encouraging me to go for creating it. I love y'all!
> 
> Thanks for reading, here's to the next update! ☆
> 
> Update, July 6th 2020: oh my god PLEASE give some love to @RecedingTides on Twitter for the absolutely gorgeous art they let me use as cover art ;___; some say if you listen closely you can still hear me weeping even to this day


	2. Fake Plastic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as a heads up! i have a creator style for the fic now. the only thing this will change is some colors within chat logs in later chapters because i thought it would be a fun stylistic thing. you are absolutely free to turn that off if it's not accessible to you, hard to read, etc. etc.! literally the only thing it affects is the color, you won't be missing anything by turning it off. just wanted to mention!
> 
> in any case, i hope you enjoy the chapter! 💙

“Assessing communication efficiency… Efficiency: 12-point-4-2 percent. Enabling contemporary speech mode.”

The odd telephone in front of them went quiet for a moment before speaking up again, this time in a more casual tone of voice.

“What is crackalackin’, home skillet? Let us bounce right to the promised land fo sho.” The tonal shift was immediate, and Lace didn’t like it. Actually, she _really_ hated it. Somehow, she was getting secondhand embarrassment from an _inanimate object_. 

Though it was also moving in an unsettlingly lively way, so maybe not completely inanimate.

“I am bout it bout it, so listen while I **slang_not_found** you the facts. The promised land is a utopia, made of warmth and light beyond even the wildest of dreams. It is all that and a bag of cool beans.”

“Does it really need to talk like that?” Lace said, annoyance making itself clear in her voice. “I feel like this is making it _harder_ for me to understand.” The telephone did not respond and instead kept speaking.

“Only cats who have proven themselves can **error** the promised land. Do you dig, dog? But no squids, as they are supreme lamers here. Naturally a part of the hotness, they do not belong down here.” The telephone seemed to lean forward in the direction of the inklings as it spoke.

“I seriously hate this,” Lace said as she buried her face in her hands.

“Wait, but we need to get out somehow right?” Sybil said. The telephone was eerily silent and still for a moment, before returning to its previous, _awful_ movements as it spoke.

“If these two prove to be **slang_not_found** enough, you may both **error** the promised land as well. Is this awesome sauce-ness enough for you?”

“Well, as long as the two of them are up for all of… whatever that means.” Sybil shrugged, looking at Lace.

“I will even allow the two octopi to coast the most together. Take tests together, get to the promised land faster. It is swepic! What says you, 10,008?”

“Tide.” Lace pulled the shorter octoling closer, further away from the telephone.”

“Hm? Yeah?” Tide looked to Lace as she pulled them aside. “What’s up?”

“Are you sure we can trust this… thing? This seems very suspicious.”

“Yeah! It’s legit. This is something many others before us have done. This is _the_ way out. That’s why our numbers are so high. Even my dad did it, and this is how he got his memories back and went to the surface like he always wanted. And no offence to my dad, but you’re _waaay_ cooler and stronger than him, so we’ll get through it in no time.” Tide smiled at Lace, and she thought about it for a moment. 

Unlike herself and Sybil, Tide seemed to know this area well enough, and if they also had a family member who went through this, then Lace figured it had to have some credibility to it. And what other option was there? Lace might have been unable to remember anything, but she _did_ know that she didn’t like this place and wanted to leave it as soon as possible.

“Well. I guess it’s worth a try if it’s all we’ve got. So… sure, alright, I’ll do it. I’ll test together with Tide.” Lace said. Tide looked very excited, tentacles wiggling somewhat as they smiled and clenched their fists together.

“You will not be disappointed! Just so you are down with the sickness, this is the Deepsea Metro Central Station, the realio dealio central hub of the facility. Here is your CQ-80 and CQ card. They are so bad.” 

Hearing a clatter, Lace looked down toward the ground and saw a card and a strange device on the ground. She leaned down and picked them up carefully, observing them both as the telephone continued.

“Guard them with you lizzife, because if you lose them, you will be in some deep **expletive blocked due to age**.”

“Wh— seriously?” Tide seemed taken aback, responding in an exaggerated manner. “I’m not a _baby_ , I’m sixteen. I know what the word ‘shit’ is.”

“Then you are knowings what happens if you lose them. The train will be arriving soon, board it once it does. Outie 5000.”

The telephone stilled, and Tide scoffed. “Whatever. I lost mine and nothing happened. I think the telephone is just bluffing so equipment doesn’t get lost.”

The station was quiet for a while. Tide seemed to be showing Cap’n Cuttlefish various things in the area. Sometimes he’d point his cane in the general direction of a strange-looking object or poster or hallway and ask about it, and Tide would begin to explain it, animated hand motions and body language accompanying their voice. The two of them were further down the station now, voices unable to be heard, though it was clear they were still talking.

Sybil sat on the floor by the base of the now-still telephone, legs drawn up to her chest. She was holding her phone, and the light illuminated her face. Her mouth was obscured by her coat, but her expression made her seem bored. Lace considered standing by her and chatting with her to help pass the time, but hesitancy surfaced at the back of her mind and she ultimately decided against it.

Lace hummed absent-mindedly while looking around at the walls, though it wasn’t long before her train of thought was interrupted.

“Hold on a second there.” The captain spoke up and Lace started, not expecting the old man to be next to her so quickly. “Could it be… Yes, there’s no mistaking it. That was the Calamari Inkantation you were just humming.”

“Huh? The what?” Lace hadn’t even realized she had been humming until it was pointed out to her, and she felt a touch of embarrassment for just a moment before composing herself. “I don’t know what that is.”

_And anyway, how did he move so fast??_

“Three.” Cap’n turned his gaze toward Sybil now, who responded with a quiet noise, confirming she was listening. “You said this Octarian doesn’t remember anything?”

Sybil nodded, eyes still locked on her phone. “Right.”

“And you said you knew her before all of this?” The follow-up question from Cap’n prompted Sybil to look up from her phone.

“Also right…” Sybil smiled sheepishly at the captain.

“Well I’ll be! You’re a fan of the Squid Sisters, aren’t you?” The Cap’n grabbed Lace’s hand then and began shaking it firmly. Confused and unsure what to say, Lace remained silent. “I’ll take your stunned silence as a yes! Even with all your memories gone, the Squid Sisters’ music has taken hold on you. I was wrong to doubt you before, any fan of the Squid Sisters is a friend of mine.”

“I mean she even met—” Sybil paused, looking like she had begun to say something she shouldn’t have. “Uh, well, she met me, so, yeah. That’d explain it.”

Lace, still confused and unsure what to do, looked over to her two companions. Sybil simply shrugged, an apologetic expression plain on her face. Tide stuck their tongue out at her, amused by Lace’s predicament.

_Real helpful. Thanks, you two._

Cap’n let go of her hand and looked at the two octolings. "So test subjects huh? What were those numbers again?”

“Mine is 9,999, and Lace’s is 10,008.” Tide said.

“Those are beakfuls. How about this, you can be Agent Eight, and you can be Agent Nine.” Cap’n pointed at Lace and Tide as he spoke.

“Or we could just tell you our names—”

“That’s not how we roll in the New Squidbeak Splatoon!” Cap’n said, interrupting Tide with a poke to their forehead.

“Hold on. You’re making them agents just like that?” Sybil asked, head tilting slightly as she asked.

“Is it that much different from when we brought you on board, Three?” The captain tapped Sybil’s calf with his bamboo cane, something Lace noticed as a bit of a habit he seemed to share with Sybil.

“I meeean, not really, I guess?”

“You worry too much, Three,” Cap’n noted. Sybil chuckled at this and glanced away nervously. “Why, I remember not even two years ago you stumbled through those grates, and—”

“Aaaaahh stop stop _stooop_!” Sybil began waving her hands in the air quickly, hoping to get the older man to stop talking.

“Hmph.” Pouting again, the Cap’n stopped before saying any more than he already had. “The point is, you turned out to be quite the fine agent, and you were recruited in far worse condition than these two.”

_‘Worse condition?’ What does that mean?_

Sybil was silent for a while before sighing. “I guess so. I’m not opposed or anything, it just surprised me.”

Before the conversation went any longer, a rumble started in the distance and Tide perked up. “Oh, there it is, there it is!”

The train pulled up and stopped at the platform, doors opening to allow everyone inside. Tide stepped forward and boarded, Cap’n following not far behind. “Well come on you two, don’t be shy, it’s not gonna eat you.” 

Lace and Sybil exchanged a look and boarded the train together, doors closing behind them.  


* * *

Tide grabbed onto a pole and remained standing, excited to get back to testing. It hadn’t been very long at all, but with everything that had happened after their last attempt, it felt like it had been a while. They touched their face as they thought about it, the dark hallways, the vibrant glow of lights, the syringe held by the lady in the lab coat, barely visible but with eyes that seemed to cut through the darkness… 

They realized they had lost themself to their thoughts for a moment, and found that their free hand was resting against the left-side of their face. Pulling their hand away they let it fall back to their side. Deciding to ignore those thoughts for now, they looked over at the people now accompanying them.

Cap’n, the older inkling, had taken a seat opposite of where they were standing, placing his cane next to him as he stretched.

Lace and Sybil remained standing as well, though Lace hadn’t grabbed onto anything yet, and if she didn’t soon — _Yep, there she goes_ , the train started moving once again and she fell right back against Sybil. The inkling instantly looked more nervous than she already did, helping Lace stand upright.

_There is definitely something going on with those two,_ Tide thought to themself. They opened their mouth to ask about it, but decided to leave it alone for the time being. “Never been on a train before?” They asked instead, intentionally trying to poke fun at Lace.

“I don’t… remember?” Lace looked at Sybil. When she didn’t respond right away, Lace continued. “Have I?”

“Uh.” Sybil shrugged. “Not as long as I’ve known you?”

“Oh.” Well damn. Poking fun at people wasn’t funny when they don’t remember things like that, Tide decided. _Maybe I should give her a break anyway, it sounds like she and Sybil have been through a lot already, too_. 

“Well, if it helps, the ride is always smoother once it’s actually going, so you can let go now if you want. See look, no hands!” Tide released their hold on the bar they had been holding and threw their hands in the air. Sybil chuckled softly and Cap’n clapped enthusiastically. “Aww yeah, we got a laugh and some applause from the squids, folks! I’ll take it. The other octoling in the room may be a tough crowd, but I’ll get her one of these days.”

“Well agents, I’m pooped. Gonna rest my cuttlebones here for a bit.” Cuttlefish was leaning forward from his spot on the seat, using his cane to keep his balance.

The doors of the car they were in opened up and the four of them turned toward the source of the noise.

“Thank you for using Deepsea Metro today. I am your humble conductor, C.Q. Cumber.” A small, vibrant blue sea slug had made his way into their car and was situated at the other end. Tide was more than familiar with him by this point, having been on this train many times when their dad did his own tests, but it was interesting to see him introduce himself so formally. 

Tide supposed the only new faces C.Q. saw were the occasional test subjects who come from outside of the Deepsea.

“You gotta be squiddin’ me! A talkin’ sea slug?!” Cuttlefish said, large eyes directed at the sea slug.

“As this is your first time riding with us… Let me explain a few things.” C.Q. Cumber made his way forward, and Tide glanced at the others as they all watched the sea slug curiously. It was very strange to think this was bizarre for the rest of them.

“Here’s the deal… We’re in a vast underground facility operated by the Kamabo Corporation… It contains a series of test chambers connected by the Deepsea Metro subway system.” C.Q. Cumber turned toward Lace. “I see you’re in possession of a CQ-80 device. I take it your aim is to reach the promised land?”

“That’s right!” Cuttlefish answered for her. “We want out of here.”

The sea slug seemed to give a small nod in acknowledgement. “Understood. The promised land is a paradise to which we denizens of the depths are forbidden entry.”

That part always sounded so sad to Tide. Who determined who could and couldn’t be a test subject, and why?

“To reach the promised land, you must pass a test at each Deepsea Metro Station, and you must also find and collect the four thangs. When all four thangs have been gathered, the door to the promised land shall open.”

“So all we gotta do is pass some tests and find some thangs and then we can go home?” Cuttlefish asked, a hand adjusting his glasses as he spoke to C.Q. Cumber.

“I believe so… I am also familiar with the accommodations the telephone has granted the two of you. You will be allowed to test together, with certain restrictions, but these tests may be modified to be more challenging. I hope that is acceptable.” C.Q. looked between the two octolings.

“Fine by me.” Lace spoke evenly.

“Yeah, that works for us!” Tide said, smiling at Lace. The taller octoling glanced toward the floor, breaking eye contact.

“Good. And also…” C.Q. turned toward Tide. “Welcome back. I was wondering where you had been. Especially considering now… Well, in any case, let me show you to your first test. Please activate your CQ-80.”

_He’s talking about my face, isn’t he?_

Lace lifted the CQ-80 and opened the menu, the interface glowing with a soft light as it displayed the first available station.

“This is the Deepsea Metro map. Go ahead and select a destination.”

Tide saw the menu change as Lace selected the first station available. From where they were standing everything was displayed backwards, but Tide still knew exactly which station it was.

“Very good. Now departing for the first test.” The train didn’t seem to change direction or give any kind of indication that it was going anywhere other than where it was before, though the LED display confirmed the next stop.

Fake Plastic Station.

A few moments later, the train came to a slow halt and the doors opened.

“Test subjects, follow me onto the platform.” C.Q. wiggled slowly until he was through the train doors. Tide decided they should give Lace the honors of walking out first and they gave a dramatic bow, gesturing in the direction of the station platform. They lifted their head to see Lace looking out the doors. She turned to look to Sybil, who smiled.

“Go on, I’ll be here when you’re back. It’ll be fine.” She said to the octoling. Lace was silent for only a moment, until she hummed in response and turned to exit the train, expressionless. Tide straightened out and gave a thumbs up to Sybil who waved back as they stepped through the train doors.

Stepping onto the platform, they heard the doors close behind them, though the train remained motionless. Tide stretched both of their arms high above their head, and they noticed Lace standing still, looking around slowly at the area around the two of them.

“It’s important to familiarize yourself with the stations and what they provide,” C.Q. Cumber started. “First, let me show you to the locker rooms.”

Following the sea slug into the locker rooms, Lace looked around. Tide wondered what was going through her head, always looking at everything. She simply looked around slowly at the room, as if she were taking in every corner and considering each dim ceiling light.

They always figured octolings would be easy to understand, because once their dad had figured out tentacle movements often revealed their mood, he always seemed to know how they were feeling, and Tide began to notice it in the mirror, too.

With Lace it was different, though. Her tentacles only ever seemed to sway as she moved and she often maintained a scowl, though she didn’t seem to actually be angry. 

_What’s her deal, anyway?_ Tide wondered.

“Here are the locker rooms. These will be available to you at every station. For the sake of convenience, any items you store in here will be available at any locker room at any station. To unlock them, you must enter your User ID and the pin found in the settings of the CQ-80 device.”

“Our stuff is available at _any_ station? How does that work?” Lace asked as C.Q. Cumber moved around to the machine on the side of the room. Without answering, the conductor continued.

“This machine is where you will receive your testing uniform. To receive your uniform, you input measurements into the screen and pick from a variety of styles, and your uniform will be provided after a short wait. Should your uniform become damaged or lost, you can redo the process here.

“You must be wearing your uniform and ink tank to test, and you will need your CQ card to be allowed entry. Your CQ-80, as well as any other belongings you have on you when you arrive at the station, must be left in a locker before you may test. Do you understand?”

“Yeah, but—”

“Restroom stalls and showers can be found around that corner.” C.Q. lifted one of his legs as he spoke, pointing in the general direction. “Once you two are ready, meet me outside and I will explain the rest.”

C.Q. slowly made his way out of the locker rooms and Lace sighed, sitting on a bench and opening the CQ-80 and opening the settings.

“You good?” Tide asked, sitting next to them.

“That was a lot of information at once, and he didn’t even answer my question, but yeah, I’m fine.” Once she found the pin number Tide peeked over at it as well. Tide noticed their old one had changed, and also noticed they seemed to be sharing one now. 

Lace closed the CQ-80 and made her way to the machine to get her uniform. “How are we even supposed to… oh, there’s measuring tape in this compartment here. Nevermind, then.”

“Anyway, I wouldn’t worry about it,” Tide said, stepping over to a locker to input their information and retrieve their uniform. “The locker thing. It’s completely possible C.Q. doesn’t even know. The first thing you have to know about the Deepsea is it’s kinda weird like that. Like, take the train, right? It just kinda… goes. It doesn’t ever seem to turn or anything.”

“Yeah, I was wondering about that, though I just assumed that the first station was predetermined once we stepped on board. There _was_ only one station available, after all.”

“Oh _nooo_ , lots of people ride the train. It won’t just be us. Seemed pretty empty at the time, but it can get busy.”

“Huh. I see.” Lace was silent for a while, as if she weren’t satisfied with that answer, but ultimately she shrugged. “I guess it doesn’t matter, for now.”

“Well, I’m gonna go get into uniform,” Tide said, walking toward one of the stalls to change, “Don’t miss me.” 

“I won’t.” Lace said, wrapping measuring tape carefully around her wrist. “You’re not even going anywhere.”

“Ouch.” Tide turned around, holding their clothing close to their chest. “Can’t even pretend that you would? That’s cold.”

Lace seemed to smirk, but it was fleeting, and her expression quickly fell. Tide considered it a victory anyway and smiled, continuing toward a stall with a skip in their step.

It didn’t take them long to change into their uniform, and they looked themself over in the mirror. It was only the second time they had seen themself since _that_ happened to them, and they weren’t used to it. They touched their face gently; their skin was slightly sensitive and a bit cooler where the scar was, but it didn’t hurt or anything. Their left eye was almost entirely black with the exception of their pupil, but they could see through it just fine. Tide shifted into their octo form out of curiosity, and was unsurprised to see the scars persisted, and they sighed.

_Well, whatever! It just makes me look interesting and edgy, right?_

Returning to their octoling form in a sitting position on the floor, they faced the mirror. They did various poses in front of the mirror as they watched themself, rising to their feet.

_Just not gonna think about it like that. It’s cool. It looks cool and I’m cool so it’s_ cool _._

Gathering their normal clothes from the shelf, they opened the door and walked back out to the locker room to find Lace still doing measurements, now measuring her ankle.

“Almost done?” Tide asked, returning to their locker with a heap of clothes.

“Almost.” Lace said. “So many damn measurements…”

“Yeah. It doesn’t take long to get to you once you’re finished, though.” Tide shoved their things back in their locker and closed it.

“Good to hear.”

Silence fell between them for about one whole minute before Tide decided to break it.

“Sooo… What’s going on with you and Sybil?”

“What?” It was impossible to miss the way Lace briefly paused as she was inputting another measurement. “There’s nothing going on between us.”

“C’mon, you _know_ that’s a lie. Wait, uh… Okay, poor word choice, maybe you don’t know it’s a lie, memory loss and all that, but it’s gotta be. There’s definitely something going on.”

Lace sighed. “I don’t know. It’s just— it’s weird, okay? She says we used to know each other.”

“You don’t believe her, or…?” Tide asked.

“I don’t know. I don’t know what to believe right now. All my memories are gone and I’m in this weird place that’s apparently deep in the ocean, and I’m being followed by an inkling in a vest?”

“Well, your case of memory loss does seem very dramatic compared to what I’ve seen others have… But she seems nice, I don’t think she’d be lying to you.”

_She also seems like she might have a thing for you,_ Tide thought, _but that seems like too much to tease Lace with right now._

Lace twirled her long, front tentacle around one of her fingers. “I don’t know. Maybe you’re right. Maybe I’ve been too harsh to her, but I just… Don’t like not knowing things for certain. All I know is that I _don’t_ know if we knew each other or not.” 

Lace seemed a little frazzled now, foot tapping on the ground as she confirmed all the measurements were correct and waited for the machine to provide her uniform.

“Well, these tests can help with that memory stuff, so I wouldn’t worry about it. Y’know? Easier said than done, sure, but you’ll find out eventually, right?”

Lace was silent for a moment as she considered that. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

The machine chimed and Lace opened the large compartment of the machine, lifting up the clothing.

“It’s really weird that all of the options for tops had a missing sleeve,” she said.

“Yeah it’s really weird. Did you notice it’s different if you’re left-handed? The zipper moves too, which makes sense, but the sleeve that’s missing also changes.”

“I didn’t. Weird. My turn to get into this uniform, though.” Lace said over her shoulder as she headed down the hallway.

Tide sat around on a bench, legs swinging as they looked around at the locker room. Their thoughts drifted to Sybil and Cap’n Cuttlefish, the two inklings who stayed behind on the train. What were they up to now? Even if it wasn’t a slow day, the train had to stop while C.Q. walked test subjects through the first station and what it had to offer. Meaning, the train must still be there. 

_Are the two of them looking out the window, trying to see where we are? Or maybe they’re catching up, or just chatting? Maybe neither of them are talking, but Cuttlefish seems to treat Sybil like they’re close, so they probably were. Maybe they’re related or something? I wouldn’t be shocked if he was her grandpa and he was just like, weird or something._

After a few boring minutes of waiting Lace returned, holding her own clothes with one arm. They were folded, albeit not perfectly, and she placed them carefully in her own locker, shutting it quietly.

Tide walked out of the locker room while Lace followed behind them. They had already gone through this explanation once, so they were feeling eager to continue. For Lace’s sake they were trying to be considerate; every part of the introduction was important, even if it was a lot of information to take in. But they didn’t exactly consider themself a patient person, and it was difficult to resist the urge to push Lace forward into a brisk pace.

C.Q. Cumber had been waiting for them, and he craned the front of his body to look in their direction.

“Welcome back. Go ahead and step onto this raised section in front of me when you’re both ready. This is known as the equipper. It’s normally intended for only one person at a time, but it’s large enough that it should be alright.”

Tide stepped forward onto the equipper, and turned to face Lace. She looked skeptical, so Tide waved her over, hoping that would convince her to join them. Lace stepped forward after another moment, standing next to Tide.

The circular walls of the equipper raised around them, reinforced metal and glass spinning around the two of them. Occasionally, a red light would scan the two of them, possibly checking to make sure they didn’t bring anything unapproved with them.

“As I said, this is an equipper.” C.Q. Cumber was quieter now, his voice somewhat blocked by the walls separating him from the two octolings. “At each station, the available weapons will be displayed on the screen you see before you. CQ points are required to take each test. We are granting you 1,000 to start with. This will be shared between the two of you, so keep that in mind. The test fee displayed in the top right of the screen indicated the number of CQ points needed to take the test, and the reward is how many CQ points you will earn for passing the test.”

Tide, growing even more antsy, tapped the screen to select the available Splattershot as soon as C.Q. Cumber’s explanation was done. The walls sunk back into the ground, and a Splattershot appeared in Lace and Tide’s hands.

“Is this another one of those weird Deepsea things?” Lace asked, looking over the Splattershot she held firmly in her hands.

“Yeah, probably?” Tide shrugged.

“You don’t sound very confident with that answer.”

“It’s _fiiine_.” Tide waved their hand.

“This area we’re in now is called a station platform.” C.Q. Cumber said, continuing his explanation. “You can find me here at each stop before you begin your tests. If you’d like more information about a certain test, come talk to me. I’m always happy to help. Over here in the corner is a test dummy you can use to test your weapon before entering a test.”

Lace made her way over to C.Q. and began speaking to him about the upcoming test while Tide shot at the available test dummy. Once Lace was ready, the two of them stepped up to the turnstile.

“This is a turnstile. All you have to do is pay the test fee to begin the test. If you ever find yourself short on CQ points and find that you don’t have enough to take a test, you’ll have to come back to it.” C.Q. Cumber raised the front of his body toward the two of them. “I hope this information helps as you take your tests. Take care out there.”

“Thanks little guy,” Tide said, giving a thumbs up as C.Q. wiggled to a nearby corner. They turned toward the other octoling standing to their right. “You ready, Lace?”

“Yeah. Let’s do this.”

“Aw, come on.” Tide nudged her with their elbow. “There’s no need to be so serious. We got this. Just scan the card and we can get in there.”

Lace hummed and scanned the card at the turnstile’s panel, and the two of them were propelled forward to the first checkpoint.

As soon as the two of them had passed through the turnstile, Tide felt… like something was _off_. They had been here before though — managing to get to the octoling with dualies before failing — but regardless, this wasn’t new to them. Lace was with them now, so they were more likely to pass and make it through okay, they figured.

So what was different?

They walked between the trees wrapped in plastic. Lace reached up to poke at the bright, glowing packets that were injected in the trees. Tide’s body shivered as they considered that might have been the same thing that… 

Nope, they were ending that train of thought right then and there, actually.

Instead they painted the ground with their ink, covering some area, trying to shove those thoughts away. Tide did _not_ want to think about the fact that something was probably wrong with them, and they _especially_ did not want to think about the fact that they weren’t even sure what it was.

Was there always such a loud, droning hum in this test before? Their head felt like it was vibrating and pounding, as if they were next to a loud, bassy speaker.

An octoling appeared before the two of them, standing on a large, brick platform covered in caution tape.

“Target acquired.”

“Octolings are your friends, right?” Cap’n’s voice played through speakers found on the ink tank they were wearing, slightly distorted and grainy. “Maybe try talking to them?”

Before either test subject was able to give that thought any consideration, the octoling fired in their direction.

“ _Destroy_.”

“Egad! Are they really going to attack a fellow Octarian? You might wanna talk a little louder!” Cap’n spoke once more, but Tide felt sick. 

_Destroy. Wait, destroy?_ Tide blinked as the thoughts entered their mind. _Destroy what?_

“I’m not going to try and talk to an enemy that’s shooting at me. We can talk when I’m not under fire.” Lace responded. While she handled the enemy, fighting for turf control and chasing the green octoling down, Tide stood still, head feeling too heavy and a dull sound ringing through their ears.

It’s no different than the last time they had tried, why did they feel so ill? Everything here was exactly the same. They walked forward past the turnstile, the octoling appeared, and then spoke, saying ‘Target acquired,’ and…

_Destroy. Destroy. Destroy._

That word felt _stuck_.

_Destroy._

Lace took down the enemy octoling and turned toward Tide, motioning for them to follow. They nodded despite the pain in their head, catching up to her. She gave them a look and they were briefly worried she was going to say something, but ultimately she said nothing. Instead Lace continued forward, Tide trailing behind cautiously.

“The gate is open! I guess taking them out was a good idea after all.”

As they entered through the next section and activated the checkpoint, that unsettling feeling hadn’t left Tide, nor had the incessant humming that seemed to drone on in their head. The ringing in their ears felt different somehow, but they couldn’t place it.

The two of them watched as two more enemy octolings rose from the ink, one wielding a roller, one other wielding a brella.

“More trouble! Double trouble!” The Cap’n’s voice played through the speakers once more.

_Where’s my roller? I’m supposed to have one, aren’t I?_ Tide froze as the thought struck them. Why would they have had any reason to suspect they’d have a brella? Or… was it a roller? Either way, the turnstile only provided them with the option of a Splattershot, no rollers or brellas were present. So why…?

The octoling with the roller jumped down from her perch and slammed her roller down onto the ground. Tide’s body moved instinctively in unison, swinging their Splattershot downward toward the ground as she did.

Left with no time to wonder what just happened, the roller-octoling approached, raising their roller high in the air. Tide reacted by opening up their brella for protection.

“Get ‘em before they get you! That’s—” 

The roller hit them directly, bypassing the non-existent brella blocking the attack. Tide yelped in pain, stumbling backwards. Ears ringing, they gritted their teeth and raised their Splattershot, taking aim and firing. Their shots missed at first, covering the area instead, until finally the enemy octoling exploded in a burst of pink ink, her distorted voice crying out.

“Seems like they’d be friendly to you, yet they’re attacking… But why?” _What a silly question old man_ , Tide thought, _they’re just Kamabo Corp. employees, aren’t they? Isn’t this their job?_ “Well, whatever.”

Feeling a tap on their shoulder, they wheeled around and began shooting, readying themself for the other enemies.

_Target acquired._

“Hey, it’s just me, it’s fine.” Tide’s fire remained on Lace a moment longer, expending all the ink left in their tank. The ink fell uselessly against Lace, bouncing off of her and scattering onto the ground. “Uh, okay. I took the other one down. Ready to move on?”

“The next gate has opened up, so get a move on!”

“Yeah, yeah.” Lace said, huffing. She continued forwards without waiting for an answer and Tide followed after.

“Can he even hear us when you talk back to him like that?” Tide asked, trying to make conversation.

Lace shrugged. “Dunno.”

“You bet I can, you silly Octarians!” Cap’n’s voice boomed from the speakers of their ink tanks as if he had yelled into his radio.

Lace clicked her tongue, annoyed. “Well, there’s your answer.”

Activating the next checkpoint, the two of them stepped into the next room. Tide’s head started pounding even more than before, and they remained in the back, placing a hand against a wall for stability. They let their head fall toward the ground, trying to steady their breath.

_Seek and…_

_… destroy._

_What…?_

_Seek and destroy —_

Tide looked up and watched Lace from the distance they kept.

_— test subject 10,008._

Tide heard the Cap’n speaking, but couldn’t understand what he was saying.

One more octoling rose from the large tower in front of her, and Lace’s shoulders rose as she prepared to fight. Tide took a step forward, gun aimed forward in the direction of the scuffle.

The octoling using dualies dodge-rolled out of Lace’s way. Tide felt their body crash into the wall they were standing next to, body slamming harshly against the arm that previously supported them. 

“Tide!” They heard Lace shout, taking out the enemy octoling and rushing over to where they were.

From their spot on the ground, Tide weakly attempted to raise their Splattershot toward Lace. They had to… had to _what_? What were they supposed to do with Lace, again?

_Seek and…_ “Destroy?”

Tide lowered their Splattershot and shook their head, trying to ignore the pain. They weren’t about to mess up their chance of getting to the promised land by being and looking useless. Rising to their feet, Tide brushed the dirt off their knees and tried to greet Lace with a smile now that she had caught up to them.

“Are you okay?” She looked them over, and they shrugged.

_Fake it ‘till you make it, Tide._

“I just tripped. No big deal.” Shit, that was a bad lie. Their head hurt so badly, every thought that ran through their head seemed to pound, and they weren’t even sure why half of those thoughts existed in the first place. They were beginning to suspect the worst, but desperately wanted to ignore it, so they skipped forward toward the now-opening gate instead.

“Anyway, thanks for taking care of that for me. I’ll help more next time, promise!” They turned to face Lace and waved them over. “Now are you coming to the goal or what?”

Lace was silent for a long time before stepping up to follow Tide. Content with that for now, Tide shot at the floating pieces in front of them, activating the goal and touching it.

A little jingle played throughout the area to signify they had passed, and all at once Tide’s head felt much lighter. Their ears were ringing and Tide covered them with their hands until the ringing faded. Taking a big breath of relief and feeling much better, they hummed; a tune that was something close to the melody they heard Lace humming earlier.

The two of them had a Super Jump activated for them, which they followed back to the turnstile. Their weapons had disappeared by the time they landed, and a small, floating object awaited Lace there, which she gently took in her hands. Tide smiled wide as they watched Lace’s expression turn to surprise.

“I think I remember something.” Lace spoke softly, turning the small thing over in her hands carefully. “What is this?”

“Yeah, that’s a mem cake for you.” Tide waved at C.Q. Cumber as they spoke to Lace. “Little bits and pieces of your memories packed inside, apparently. My dad loved those things, he showed ‘em to me sometimes. Apparently I tried to eat one when I was little, though, so he stopped showing me as much.”

Lace hummed a bit of that tune again _—_ _What did that old man call it again? The Kalmar Recantation…?_ _—_ before she spoke, “There’s not one for you?”

“Huh?” Tide wasn’t expecting that question, and they shrugged. “I dunno. I don’t think everyone necessarily gets them. And even if I did, I’d probably just remember random stuff from homeschooling, like math formulas or something. I forgot those on purpose, and I do _not_ need or want those back.”

“Hmm. Well, it’s very faint… it’s not a lot, but it’s definitely something.”

“Before we get back on the train, I figure I should ask, do you want to do any more tests, or are you done?” Tide said. “Because if you’re done, we should go get our stuff before we get back on. But if you want to do more, we can just stay in our uniform.”

Lace was quiet, looking at the mem cake in her hands. “Yeah,” she spoke finally, “I think I’d like to do some more.”

“Alriiight!” Tide jumped with excitement and skipped through the doors of the train. “Get ready Lace, we’re about to be the best test subjects this place has ever seen!”

They saw Lace roll her eyes with a smile before she stepped on board and took a seat across from Sybil. Despite whatever had happened in that test, Tide was feeling very hopeful about what lay ahead for them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> phew! this chapter ended up getting away from me to the point that a lot of it had to be moved to the next chapter, and it still ended up being nearly 7,000 words, which is wild?? a big thank you to those of you who proofread this chapter and gave feedback, i really appreciate it!
> 
> i hope you all look forward to the next chapter! 🐙


	3. Picking Up the Past

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here's to another metrones monday :]

_“…And she was like, super good too, and super sneaky! It was one of my first times trying a charger, and I couldn’t even find her half of the time, but I was trying to improve my aim, so I kept my sight on her, trying to see if I could snipe her…”_

She couldn’t stop thinking about what she had remembered. It wasn’t much, sure, but it was _something_. It seemed like it was a memory that someone else was sharing, though, not something of her own.

But if not hers, then… whose?

“Hey.” Sybil waved to them both as the train took off. Tide took a seat and began messing with their shared CQ-80 almost instantly. Lace sat across from Sybil, and the inkling leaned forward. “You doing okay?” Her voice held clear concern and it took her back for a moment.

The train car was still empty other than Sybil and the captain, Lace noted, and Cap’n seemed to be napping in his spot next to her, cane resting in his lap. Lace looked to Sybil then, meeting her eyes. The inkling seemed to make herself smaller when she did, as if she were nervous she had made the wrong move just by looking at her. Sybil _did_ maintain eye contact though, even if she was fidgeting.

“I’m… fine.” Lace said, speaking slowly and watching the inkling carefully.

“Oh. Um, good.” Now Sybil looked even more uncomfortable, breaking their eye contact. She fidgeted with her sleeves until she pulled out her phone, swiping the screen occasionally. Lace didn’t want to keep upsetting her; she already seemed to have enough that worried her.

_And a big source of her anxiety seems to come from me,_ she thought with a pressing feeling of guilt. _Should I make conversation, or would that just make it worse?_

She thought about her conversation with Tide earlier and decided to initiate conversation. “I think I remembered something. Here, see this?” Lace said, holding the mem cake carefully with two fingers and presenting it to the inkling. Sybil looked back at her and then the mem cake, her eyes widening, seeming to almost shine with curiosity. 

“What is this?” Sybil asked, looking at it curiously. Lace smiled a little as she watched the inkling. Sybil reached forward as if she wanted to hold it, but she drew her hand back slowly as though she had thought better of it.

Before Lace had the chance to answer Sybil's question, the door to their compartment opened and C.Q. Cumber wiggled in slowly, leaving a shimmering trail behind him that quickly disappeared. Once he had drawn closer, he shifted his weight, lifting the front of his body off the ground in Lace and Tide’s direction. Tide scooted closer and waved at him.

“Congratulations on passing your first test.”

“Aw thanks! It was nothing for us, right Lace?” Tide hugged Lace as they spoke, and she pushed them away with one arm, mem cake still held carefully in her right hand. The unprompted contact was startling, and she didn’t want anything to happen to the mem cake she was holding. The other octoling shrugged and settled back on the seat.

“By the way, the memento you have there in your hand, that is called a mem cake. Mem cakes are formed by compressing memories into physical form. They’ll be awarded to you by Kamabo Co. to commemorate each test you pass.”

“Well, that was an aptly-timed explanation…” Sybil said, looking at the sea slug on the ground.

“Wait. So you’re telling me my memories are gone and were made into these… these _things_?” Lace asked, her voice clear with annoyance.

“The Kamabo Corporation works in ways I may never understand. My job is to run the train and assist test subjects when necessary. I don’t seek to learn more about my job than necessary.”

As the tiny conductor of the train spoke, Lace felt herself becoming more irritated. How could he _not know_? Why would he blindly do his job without trying to understand what he was doing? If it was his job to facilitate the tests, how could he not know something that seemed so integral? Was someone doing this to her, or was it just a part of how the place operates?

“In any case… new stations are now available for you to visit and test your skills within. You may freely request a stop at any time as long as you can access it on the map of your CQ-80, and you will be brought there within the allotted times within the Deepsea Metro’s schedule. Please feel free to familiarize yourselves with it for your own convenience. Safe travels.”

C.Q. Cumber excused himself and made his way back to the front of the train.

"That guy…" Lace mumbled, arms crossed and held close to her chest as she huffed. His absence left her alone to think, eyes pointed toward the ground. Tide seemed content to leave her alone for the time being, wandering around the train as they poked at signs or entered different cars. 

She didn’t know much, but Lace was not a fan of everything she knew so far. Or, more precisely, she wasn’t a fan of how much she _didn’t_ know. Everyone else seemed content to leave it a mystery as to how everything worked or why things worked the way they did. But it _bothered_ her. Was it really fine to just accept that some things didn’t have a solution or explanation?

Tide began quickly pacing back and forth between the train cars for whatever reason, and even though it was definitely _distracting_ , Lace appreciated the time alone to think. It was entirely possible that Tide was lost in thought as well, actually; they didn’t seem as distracted as they did a few minutes earlier.

Sybil had been silent for a while until she nudged one of her shoes against Lace's own, a light tap that broke her out of her thoughts.

"Hey," she said, prompting Lace to raise her head to look at the inkling. "I know you're uhh, probably thinking about stuff, but… you know how the captain was able to talk with you throughout the test?"

Lace nodded, remembering his constant commentary on what was going on. It was distracting at first, and not always helpful, but it wasn't entirely unwelcome to hear an outside perspective on what was happening.

"Well, it’s because he checked the frequencies with his radios. That’s how he was able to reach you.” Sybil shifted in her seat, avoiding eye contact now. “And… for some reason, footage of the test is played in the train when you’re out there.”

“What?” Lace said, somewhat alarmed. “Footage of the test?”

“I mean, yeah, seemed like it.” Sybil pointed at some of the LED-backed panels that displayed various ads or information. “Some of the images there changed to various camera angles a bit after the two of you left the train, it was honestly kind of freaky? But that’s how the captain was responding to you and your surroundings.”

Lace found this information very, _very_ concerning. If there was footage being presented on screens on the train when they weren’t here, that meant it was intended for someone to watch it, right? Who could be observing them, though? It was highly unlikely that it was intended for Sybil and Cuttlefish considering the circumstances. So who…?

Her first thought was C.Q. Cumber, but she found it unlikely the footage would play throughout the whole train if it were only for him. From what Tide had told her, it seemed like C.Q. Cumber stayed on the platform unless there were other stops requested by other passengers. Having footage displayed throughout the whole train seemed like overkill when he seemed to usually stay in the front of the train, Lace reasoned.

“Anyway…” Sybil started again. “I know that’s probably not the best thing to hear, and probably kind of freaky, but what I was getting to was—”

“Three here’s able to talk to ya too, but she didn’t want to last time.” Cap’n spoke then, awake suddenly as he stretched.

“I’m— it’s not that I didn’t want to, I do want to, I just…” Sybil inhaled, paused, and exhaled. “Well, anyway…” Sybil tapped the headset currently around her neck, and the lights shimmered faintly at the touch. “I can chime in, too, if you want. Also, um, there’s one other thing—”

“Oh I’d _love_ more people to talk to during tests!” Tide sat down swiftly next to Lace then, joining the conversation late. “The more the merrier. I’m not even sure if that kind of thing is like, _allowed_ , actually. But I’m not even sure if two people testing together is really allowed either, so who cares. And also, I mean, the telephone let us and it’s the thing that gives us our testing things so—”

“Sure, I mean, why not?” Lace shrugged, interrupting Tide’s rambling. “About you joining in, I mean. It’d be nice to hear what you have to say.”

Sybil’s face seemed to light up a bit, expression hard to read. Shocked, happy, confused? Tide nudged Lace’s arm harshly and she cursed softly under her breath. Lace looked at them as she rubbed her arm, and Tide simply smirked and nodded her head toward Sybil.

Lace didn’t understand what Tide was trying to say and made a face. They groaned loudly and covered their face, hands falling downward until they pressed themselves together in front of their mouth as if they were thinking or concentrating.

_Well, that was weird._ Lace thought. “What was the other thing you wanted to say, Sybil?” She said, turning her attention back to the inkling.

“Uhhhh…” Sybil lifted a hand to her neck and looked away to the side. She was about to start again when a harsh static broke through the brief silence shared between them.

“Huh? Is this thing working?!” The elderly inkling spoke, turning his body to pull out an oversized two-way radio. The sound grew louder, confirming the static was coming from the speaker of the device. “Oho, I hear something! Agent One? Agent Two? Do you copy?”

Lace noticed Tide and Sybil both leaning forward as they looked at the radio. She couldn’t deny she was also anticipating whatever they might hear come through the radio. Maybe someone who could help?

The radio continued to crackle, garbled, barely audible speaking sometimes coming through the line. It sounded like it might possibly be Octarian speak, and Lace thought to suggest it might just be interference. After all, there were definitely other octolings down here, even if all but one of them so far had appeared to look… _unwell_.

“Mic check, one-two, who the heck are you?!” A loud voice boomed from the radio and everyone in the car startled. This Cap’n dropped the radio and it clattered next to him. The antenna glowed now, a soft pink, and the radio seemed to clatter around with every word.

“Excuse me?” Cap’n shouted back at the radio.

“Pearl! Didn’t anyone teach you to respect your elders?!” A second, gentler voice spoke from the radio this time. Strangely, the light became a soft green as the other person spoke.

“Wha—?! Who am I speaking to here? How did you reach this signal? State your names now!”

“Uh, preeetty sure I asked you first dude. But whatever, I’m Pearl, but you can call me MC. Princess!” Pearl responded. The light of the radio changed to pink once more, and Lace found it fascinating that the color seemed to change based on whoever was speaking. “ _My deets? I’m short and sweet! I spit that fire make posers perspire. Step to my game? I’ll bring the pain. I’m never shook because I’m off the hook!_ ”

“Oho? Check it, kid. Are you stepping to me with a rap battle?” Cap’n retorted, a dangerous-looking gleam in his eye.

“Oh my cod,” Sybil groaned, “please don’t.”

“Oh my cod, please do.” Tide countered, a devilish grin on their face.

“MC Craig in the house!” The elder inkling continued in spite of Sybil’s quiet protests. “ _Call me Cap’n Cuttlefish, but not because I cuddle fish. Smooth like butta bet you wish that you could stunt a flow like this!_ ”

Pearl and Cuttlefish continued for a few more verses, and Sybil pulled her coat up to cover as much of her face as possible. Tide laughed loudly, though Lace couldn’t tell if it was due to Cuttlefish’s rapping or Sybil’s embarrassment. It was amusing regardless, and she offered a sympathetic smile in Sybil’s direction. The inkling attempted to hide her face even more then, and Lace chuckled. It was kind of cute.

“Okay, you two. That’s enough!” The two stopped and Cap’n’s gaze returned to the radio. Sybil relaxed her posture and Tide’s laughter slowly died down as well. “Mr. Cuttlefish, was it? We found a radio here and heard your transmission. We’re currently on Mount Nantai. Where are you calling from?”

The inklings on the train perked up.

“Mount Nantai… That’s near Octo Valley! My protégé and I were near there, but it seems we’ve ended up deep underground.” Cuttlefish said.

“I see… So you and…your protégé don’t know where you are? Sorry to hear that…” The voice on the line responded, sympathy clear in her voice.

“No, we do.” Tide spoke up then, and everyone’s attention fell on them. “Oh, hi, I’m Tide. I mean, uh, Nine? I _guess_? We’re in the Deepsea. This is where I live!”

“This is Three speaking, Captain Cuttlefish’s ‘protégé,’” Sybil started now, sounding very serious, “the captain and I were returning from a short mission when the two of us as well as L— _Eight_ , ended up deep wherever we are now. Luckily, Nine knows this area well enough, but we still need to find a way out back to the surface.”

“Well put, Three.” The captain tapped the top of her head lightly with his cane and she shoved it away, her smile showing as the fabric covering her face slacked. Lace looked away quickly, attention focused firmly on the radio.

“Oh, oh my gosh, like, _the_ Three? Like, _took down DJ Octavio during the coolest performance with the Squid Sisters ever_? That Three?” The voice on the other end continued, excitement clear in her voice.

“Ah— um? I mean… I guess that’s me, yeah…?” Sybil’s smile faded and her serious, even tone disappeared. She sounded incredibly nervous now, and she looked like she wanted to sink into the seat.

“Oh wow! I have so many questions for you, like—” 

“‘Rina! I love ya, but you gotta focus!” The sound of Pearl’s voice cut over the previous speaker. “I know you got a lot you wanna ask Three, but save it for later!”

Lace noticed Sybil grasping at her coat sleeves, fabric bunching up tightly under her fingers.

“Ah! Right, sorry… Well, worry not! From now on you’ll have me, Marina — also known as DJ Hyperfresh — to support you!” Marina said. Sybil looked toward Lace for a moment before staring at the ceiling. “I’ll get to work analyzing your surroundings, and hopefully I’ll be of some help to you!”

“I don’t really get what’s going on or anything, but hang tight!” Pearl’s energetic voice boomed through the radio once again. “We got you guys!”

“Okay, well… Anyone who loves rapping is a friend of mine. Thanks for your help! We’re off to pass some sorta tests and make our way to the promised land!” Cap’n raised his cane at Lace and Tide now, moving it back and forth between the two of them. “And by “we,” I mean you two, Agents Eight and Nine. Time to get to it!"

“Yeah yeah, we’re getting there. Tide, can you open the map?” Lace said, pointing at the device in Tide’s hand. “Let’s pick another station.”

“Aye aye, captain!” Tide said with an exaggerated mock salute before opening up the menu of the CQ-80.

The radio crackled once more and fell silent, clattering on the seat next to Cuttlefish.

* * *

_She navigated through the cold, damp hallways, the tap of her boots echoing faintly along the old, rusted walls. She walked past the odd octotroopers who lingered around in the halls. She wasn’t sure how, or if it was even possible, but she had to get out. Had to see what else the world offered, had to see if there was anything more than drills or combat or orders, more than dim lighting and musty air. Turning the corner, she…_

After returning to the train for the fourth time today, Lace decided she really didn’t like some of these tests. She took a seat next to Sybil and sighed. Tide sat across from the two of them and Sybil tossed a bottle of water at them.

The train left the station, and the display of their CQ-80 opened up automatically, displaying the map. A sound played aloud as a new line made itself available, a rectangular shape intersecting with the station they recently exited.

“You have now unlocked two lines.” C.Q. Cumber’s voice played through the speaker of the CQ-80. “You can view them on the Deepsea Metro map. Stations marked with pulsing rings contain one of the four thangs. Seek them out. For unlocking this new line, please see me at your earliest convenience for a reward.”

“Oh, dibs!” Tide shouted, springing to their feet and rushing on over.

“Feel free.” Lace responded. She already wasn’t a fan of the conductor of the train, and the tests they completed left her feeling worn out anyway. Physically she felt fine, but mentally… it had been a very long day. She was thankful to be back in the clothes she’d worn previously, they were a welcome comfort. Pocketing the CQ-80, she leaned back in her seat.

Roll Out Station was definitely the worst of the bunch so far, she decided. The area was hard to navigate with the both of them in ballers, and neither of them had even been in one prior to the test. She knew there was a first time for everything, and it had been quite the learning experience to be sure… but being in a giant, clear beach ball was not exactly the easiest to get used to. Nearly falling off a platform in one of them was definitely _not_ Lace’s favorite thing either.

Bounce With Me Station wasn’t as bad, though being shot in mid-air was embarrassing. Somehow Tide had made it through without incident, and Pearl was determined to not let Lace forget that. Normally she’d be annoyed with someone for intentionally trying to get on her nerves like that, but it was funny to banter with her. She wasn’t afraid to quip back when Lace made a sarcastic comment and she found it fun. Marina’s grounding presence was nice as well, chiding Pearl when she went too far or offering words of advice to the testing octolings.

While Wassup 8-Ball Station wasn’t particularly challenging, it showed Lace the consequence of failing certain objectives. Tide had accidentally shot the 8-ball off the edge, causing a balloon to expand from Tide’s ink tank, detonating with a huge explosion of enemy ink. Lace was horrified and panicked for a moment until Tide had returned, completely unfazed and distracted by an inkrail within a minute. The feeling of unease didn’t leave her for a while, even with Sybil’s words of comfort, though Lace supposed it worked like any other respawn system and that was enough to ease her nerves for the time being.

Lace remembered a bit more though, which was enough for her to keep going through tests despite the feelings she was having that ranged from ‘mildly embarrassed’ to ‘shocked and terrified.’ 

While the first three mem cakes she had gotten seemed to be stories shared by Sybil in the past — something the two of them figured out once Lace began sharing what the memories were — the fourth mem cake was different. It wasn’t much, but this time it felt like her own memory. It was just so infuriating how… _short_ it was. It gave her enough to work with to know that she wasn’t fond of wherever it took place, but that was about it. Lace felt like she was just short of something she should know, like the memory kept something just barely out of reach.

Sybil nudged Lace’s arm, interrupting her thoughts. She offered her a bottle of water of her own. Lace took it, enjoying the cool feeling from the water droplets on the outside of the bottle.

“Whatcha got?” Sybil asked.

“Not much. But it was definitely something. Different this time. I don’t know where I was, but there was an odd octotrooper here or there. I remember what those _are_ now, also.” She waved the water bottle in her hands as she spoke until she realized, lowering the water bottle to open it up instead. “Wherever I was I wanted out, though. Like I wanted to see more than what I had. If that makes sense.”

“I think it does,” Sybil said with a nod as Lace drank from the water bottle. “Memories can often hold feelings or thoughts, so… I don’t think it’s that weird to say that a memory made you feel a certain way.”

Lace lowered the bottle to screw the cap back on, placing the bottle down and wiping her hand on her shorts to dry them from the condensated water. “Yeah, I guess so. Thanks, Sybil.”

Regardless of how confusing everything was, Lace was feeling much better overall. It felt good to know that it was actually possible to recover her memories. Sure, maybe the memories she had been getting back were really small ones, but Tide had pointed out that it was probably normal. The tests varied in challenge and some could be pretty difficult, so it was likely that ‘ _bigger rewards are behind bigger challenges_!’ as they had said.

It was nice to know that she wasn’t alone in more ways than one, Tide’s goofy demeanor accompanying her through tests and several voices present to give the two of them advice. It was often debatable as to how helpful the advice was — sometimes not being advice at all, like when Pearl just complained to Marina about their upcoming work schedules — but it felt nice that there were others looking out for the two as they took on various challenges.

It was also relieving that Sybil was opening up and acting a little less skittish around her, too. They were sitting next to each other even now, their shoulders touching and knees occasionally bumping against one another. Lace felt her tentacles curl a little as she processed just how close they were, but the contact wasn’t unwelcome, so she had no intention to move just yet.

Sybil was very warm, which contrasted nicely with the cold metal of the train. It was comforting.

“Oh, by the way…” Marina’s voice played through the CQ-80, “while you’ve been out there passing tests, Cap’n Cuttlefish and Three had some time on their hands, so we’ve been chatting. We thought you might be interested, even if you aren’t able to respond with your device, so we made the chat log viewable to you.”

“Oh.” Lace directed the display to the new chat section of the CQ-80. “Uh, cool, thanks.”

Marina laughed. “Well, I gotta go for now, so… bye Eight! Let’s catch up sometime.”

Lace gave a brief nod before realizing that Marina wouldn’t be able to see it.

■Webmaster■ > DJ_Hyperfresh has joined the chatroom.  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Hey.  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Anyone here yet?  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Helloooooooooooo?  
■Webmaster■ > MC.Princess has joined the chatroom.  
MC.Princess > Ayo its Pearl! aka MC Princess, aka The Baroness of Bars, aka MC Foreign Policy  
DJ_Hyperfresh > ...  
MC.Princess > OH SNAP its Marina  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Hey, Pearl...  
MC.Princess > aka DJ Hyperfresh  
■Webmaster■ > 333 has joined the chatroom.  
MC.Princess > aka DJ Cold Breakfast, aka The Fuzzy Dazzler, aka DJ Catch-and-Release  
MC.Princess > oh I’m guessing that’s Three?? What’s with the username yo?  
333 > I couldn’t think of anything else soo I just went with this?  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Hi Three!!  
DJ_Hyperfresh > I don’t blame you, usernames are pretty hard…  
MC.Princess > Yo, they might be hard, but we gotta get you a better username. You can do better than three threes, Three!  
■Webmaster■ > CraigCuttlefish has joined the chatroom.  
MC.Princess > Bahaha! Dudes screen name is just his first and last name. Gotta love old people lol  
MC.Princess > Well Three, you’ve got someone’s username beat, at least  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Hello, Captain Cuttlefish! Can you see the chatroom okay on your cell phone?  
CraigCuttlefish > I CAN SEE IT JUST FINE THANKS FOR ASKING  
CraigCuttlefish > BUT ALL MY LETTERS ARE BIG FOR SOME REASON  
MC.Princess > Hit the caps lock key, cap  
DJ_Hyperfresh > It should be the button in the lower left, depending on your phone.  
333 > Hold on, I’ll help him  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Btw, I was able to hack into the CQ-80, so Agents 8 and 9 should be able to see our chat logs now...  
333 > Will they be able to talk as well, or?  
DJ_Hyperfresh > I don’t think so. The CQ-80 lacks a keyboard.  
MC.Princess > Eh, it’s fine! We can still catch ‘em on the radio or the CQ-88 or whatever sometimes!  
DJ_Hyperfresh > CQ-80, Pearl.  
MC.Princess > That’s what I said!  
CraigCuttlefish > Te$+, 1 @M cUtTleF:$h  
333 > Wh  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Agent 8 and 9, we'll send you a dump of our latest chat logs every few stages. Keep an eye out!  
MC.Princess> Yo cap how did you even type like that? You gotta show me.

“Well, it’s nice to see you all getting along,” Lace said, closing the CQ-80’s display. As she did, Tide ran back in and sat down in the row across from the two of them.

“We got more points!” Tide said. “Only 500 more, so not a huge amount, but points are points.”

The doors to their car opened and Lace turned that way to see a large isopod strolling in. He was holding a briefcase in one hand and the rest of his arms were crossed, and his eyes were covered by small glasses.

“Uncle Iso!” Tide shouted, jumping up from their seat as quickly as they’d sat down. They ran over and tackled the man with a hug which he returned with a few of his free arms.

“Hello young Tidal. It’s been a while since I saw you last, I was beginning to worry something happened to you.” His deep voice carried through the train, and Lace and Sybil both looked on at the two of them as they spoke. The large man took a seat and noticed the two of them looking over. “Those over there, are they new friends of yours?”

“Yeah! That one is Lace, she’s testing with me at the same time!” Tide pointed out Lace before they sat down next to the man they called Uncle Iso and talked excitedly. “The telephone said we could do that, and C.Q. Cumber agreed. Our tests are a bit harder to make up for it, but we’ve got it so it’s totally fine.

“And then that’s Sybil—” Tide pointed at Sybil now, and Lace could feel how Sybil tensed at the attention, “—that’s Lace’s friend from the surface. Lace doesn’t really remember anything, so we gotta try and get all the mem cakes back for her, but Sybil is a really good friend, helping her how she can to remember.”

“You two, come here a moment, if you would.” The isopod said, beckoning them over with one arm. Sybil and Lace exchanged a glance before standing up and walking over to greet him.

“Hello.” Sybil waved. “It’s nice to meet you. You’re Tide’s uncle?”

“That is correct, young squid,” he responded. Lace was beginning to think she might have been the only one here who didn’t know what ‘uncle’ meant.

“They call me Iso Padre. That’s not my name, mind you, but it’s the only one I recall now. Except for young Tidal here, she calls me Uncle Iso. Lace, was it?” He looked at Lace and she nodded. “May I take a look at those mem cakes?”

Lace presented the four mem cakes she had so far to him, and he took them one by one in his claws until four of them were each holding a mem cake. He looked over each of them slowly before returning them to Lace’s hands.

“You keep yourself closely guarded, I see.” Iso Padre crossed his arms again now that his claws were free of the mem cakes.

Lace blinked, unsure of what prompted him to say that. “What?”

“Mem cakes are strange things; they are a physical manifestation of one’s mind. You have to let those walls down in order to share them. Of course, you are never under any obligation to share your memories with anyone. That is for you and you alone to decide. However, there is some strength to be found in being vulnerable and letting others in.”

Lace stared at the mem cakes in her hands. Sharing the memories… surely he meant in the sense of talking about them, right? Or was he speaking literally? She wasn’t sure if she could believe anything like that, but mem cakes were already strange enough, so she figured it wasn’t the most far-fetched thing. 

And anyway, being vulnerable enough to share them… 

Despite not having most of her memories, she knew enough about herself to know that she wasn’t exactly an open book. She wasn’t sure that she wanted to be, either. But maybe she would be willing to give it a try. The first three mem cakes all seemed to involve Sybil, even if Lace still couldn’t remember Sybil herself. So if she were to try it out with anyone, maybe…?

“Jeeeez Uncle Iso, you’re as weird as usual.” Tide said, rolling their head dramatically. “Lace only just started getting those, don’t overwhelm her with all that stuff. She isn't from around here.” Lace would normally interject and say she'd love to know as much as possible, but she _was_ admittedly overwhelmed with everything that happened today.

Iso Padre ignored Tide but remained silent as he opened his briefcase; it appeared to be full of toys and other miscellaneous things meant for children, and procured a small box from within. He handed it to Lace, who took it carefully. “It helps to have a place to keep them safe. Carrying them all loosely is no good.”

“Hm. Thanks.” Lace unfastened the latch and opened the box, carefully placing the four mem cakes inside. She closed the box and looked it over, running a hand along the simple wooden surface.

“Good luck, young one. And no matter what you choose to do with the mem cakes, you should treasure them. Your memories are priceless.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope you all enjoyed the chapter! more coming up soon... 👀
> 
> by the way, i made ref sheets for the three protagonists if you'd like to see them!  
> (these were mostly made for art fight since that's coming up real soon, but hopefully they're a nice visual reference here, too c: )  
> https://twitter.com/skygummi/status/1274413882501718017?s=20
> 
> as always, a big thank you to my beta readers!! 💖💙


	4. Getting Settled

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As a little birthday treat to myself, here's the next chapter! Enjoy!

Sybil stepped off the train for the first time since boarding a few hours ago and stood on the platform in awe at what she saw before her.

_ So this is where Tide lives, _ she thought, taking in the city.

Ahead of the three of them was a large city aglow with neon lights. It wasn’t that different from Inkopolis during Splatfest, almost every sign and building illuminated with lights. The largest difference was that there was no sky full of stars overhead, only a large glass ceiling with shimmering water above. Occasionally, LED lights on the glass ceiling would light up in various shapes or printed messages.

Tide had been kind enough to invite them both to stay at their place, telling them that it was big enough to share as long as Lace and Sybil were fine with sharing a room. The two of them agreed, and even though Sybil was anxious for more reasons than one, it wasn’t like they had any idea of where to go otherwise. Regardless of her worries, Sybil appreciated having a place to stay during all this, and she had a feeling Tide was also just excited to have roommates.

Sybil wasn’t confident that the captain would be okay left alone on the train, but he’d insisted he would be fine on his own. He had gone back to chatting with the man named Iso Padre before she’d had a chance to object. The captain would be fine, and she had to trust that.

“Are you coming, Sybil?” Tide asked. Sybil looked away from all the city lights and noticed the two octolings further ahead, waiting for her. She gave a nod and lightly jogged to catch up to the both of them, making sure not to push herself.

She trailed behind the two of them, content to take in the sights around her. She noticed restaurants, apartment buildings, stores, even the odd building that looked abandoned.  _ It really is just like a city, _ she thought. Though she didn’t have any reason to believe Tide was lying when they’d first told them about it, Sybil wasn’t sure she could believe a place like this had a city. Yet here it stood, in the vast depths of the ocean.

The city wasn’t as packed as Sybil remembered Inkopolis being, but there were still many others who saw them. Tide waved to almost all of them, and was greeted in various different ways in response. It was very easy to notice the way people stared at her and Lace though.

Sybil really didn’t like being stared at.

The only Octarians she had run into here other than Tide had been ‘sanitized,’ as Tide had put it, and she hadn't seen any other inklings at all. That telephone… didn’t it say that inklings weren’t a part of things down here?

In any case, since this seemed to be a functional city like any other, Sybil decided that she needed to ask Tide about something. It felt like a very big thing to ask though, and Lace didn’t remember anything, so she couldn’t fall back onto her for confidence.

_ Let’s just… rip off the bandage and get it over with.  _ With a breath in and a breath out, she walked forward to stand in between Lace and Tide.

“Hey, Tide, you know this city pretty well, right?” Sybil asked. Instantly anxious once the words left her mouth, she began stimming with the ring on her finger, her thumb flicking the ring rapidly as she tried to ignore how weak her legs felt. 

“Yeah, why?” Tide said, kicking a stray rock on the ground. It clattered ahead of them before rolling to a stop. They had kicked it again before Sybil reminded herself there was no going back now that she had brought it up.

“Well,” Sybil nervously fiddled with her hands, “I need, uh… Is there a place where I can talk to someone about hormone medication?”

She noticed Lace looking at her then, and the octoling’s expression seemed to hold a bit of concern. Lace might not have remembered her, but Sybil definitely remembered Lace, and she had gotten pretty good at reading how she felt. Lace was also very good at observing others, and there was no doubt in Sybil’s mind that she noticed how shaky and nervous she was.

“Hmmm.” Tide stopped walking now, raising a hand to their chin. “Yeah, I thiiink I know where it is… My dad did referrals there, sometimes. Do you need to go now, or were you just wondering, or…?”

“Aaah, well uh…” Sybil felt very unsure about answering, but Tide seemed nice enough, so she continued despite the dreadful feeling in her body. “I really need to get more medication as soon as possible because, ah, I didn’t exactly have it all on me when I fell in, and… I need to see about getting more, because… I’m trans, and, I’d really like to avoid missing medication for HRT if possible…” Sybil’s voice trailed off, confidence dying out.

“Oh yeah, sure, I know where you can do that. I can take you if you want, when do you want to go?”

“That’s it?” Sybil asked, shocked by Tide’s nonchalant response. “You don’t mind?”

“Huh? I mean, yeah, it’s nothing new to me, I know basically everyone and everything here, y’know? It’s not very far from here, either, if I’m thinking of the right place—”

“No,” Sybil cut Tide off and she paused. She hadn’t meant to cut them off like that and was trying not to feel any more anxious than she already did, but Tide simply waited patiently for her response, looking up at her. “I meant about—”

“Oh.  _ Ohhhh _ . Nah, I don’t. I’m nonbinary, myself!” Tide grinned and Sybil nervously smiled back.

“Ah. Well, thank you. I shouldn’t have assumed the worst, I just…”

“Nooo. Don’t worry, I get it. If it helps, people who would bug you about that kind of stuff are definitely not in big numbers here. And if anyone bothered you I’d beat them up!” Tide punched their own hand and Sybil laughed.

“Hmm. Well, if you don’t mind, going there first would be preferable, just to get the process going as quickly as possible.”

“Sure!” Tide took the CQ-80 and held it close to their mouth, as if speaking into it. “Now if you take a look to your right around this corner here, you will now see the side alley your trusty tour guide Tidal Pod, yours truly, will be leading you through. Watch your step, you wouldn’t want to step on a sea slug.”

The two of them followed behind Tide, Lace following closer to Sybil than she had before. Sybil instinctively reached for Lace’s hand as they walked through the various dark alleyways that Tide narrated their way through. She pulled her hand away out of embarrassment once she realized what she was doing —  _ Lace doesn’t have any memories, remember?  _ — but was surprised when she felt Lace’s cold hand clasping hers firmly.

Sybil was thankful for the darkness covering them, because she could feel her face warming up.

After Sybil had gotten settled with the medications she needed — which was luckily a relatively quick detour, and despite some weird looks everyone was very kind to her — she met Tide and Lace outside where the two of them had been waiting for her. Tide jumped up from the bench they had been sitting on and said that it was ‘ _ time to finally get some food for you weirdos _ ’ and began leading the two of them once again.

Thankfully, most things in this city didn’t seem to actually cost money, and Tide assured them getting a quick meal wouldn’t be a problem. Sybil didn’t understand exactly how that worked, but for the time being she was too hungry to care and simply nodded.

Originally, the plan had been to have a nice breakfast with the captain once the two of them had returned from their mission. That had been thrown out the window given everything that had happened though, and almost 20 hours since her last meal she found herself walking into a two-story Denny’s following behind the two octolings. 

Sybil wondered what Two must be thinking right now. They were supposed to meet up with her when they returned, and she’d already been frantic about the disappearance of One… And now she and Cap’n hadn’t returned and likely wouldn’t for a while.

…Okay, so maybe Cap’n disappearing with no word wasn’t exactly out of left field for the captain of the NSS; the old man kind of just did what he wanted when he wanted, even if that meant disappearing on his grandkids for a while to the point they stopped worrying about it. Sybil, though… she was their Three that they could always depend on to be there because she always  _ was _ there.

“Helloooo, Earth to Sybil,” Tide said, waving a hand in front of Sybil’s face. “Do you have a preference on where we sit?”

“Um.” Sybil blinked, processing what Tide had just asked her. “Not really.”

“Wherever is fine, then!”

Shaking her thoughts away for now, she followed the host to their table; a booth situated by a large window with a view of the street. Lace sat down and Tide sat next to her with a grin. Sybil sat opposite from them, wasting no time in picking up the provided menu and looking it over. 

_ Damn, everything looks  _ really  _ good right now… _

The agent had survived worse in the past to be sure, but now that she was adjusted to a mostly-regular eating schedule, going so long without eating was causing her to lose focus and space out. Luckily, she made it long enough to order her food before completely zoning out and staring at her phone’s lock screen. Lace and Tide were talking, but their conversation blended in with the sounds of distant chatter and silverware clattering against plates, becoming white noise.

It wasn’t until a plate was passed in front of her that she snapped back to attention, uttering a rushed thanks as she sat up in her seat. She pulled out her phone and took a quick picture of her plate before placing it down to the side and quickly starting to eat.

She made it about halfway through her eggs and pancakes before she started to feel energized again, perking up enough to actually be able to focus on the two octolings in front of her.

“Feeling better?” Lace asked, noticing that she was looking at them now.

“Yeah, you doing alright?” Tide asked, leaning forward to look at Sybil. “You were so out of it I thought you might’ve passed out right there on the table.”

“Yeah, I’m fine now,” Sybil said, waving a hand in front of her as she spoke. “I was just really hungry, I haven’t eaten since yesterday.”

“What!” Tide shouted, grabbing their fork. “Who didn’t feed you? I’ll kick their ass!”

“Ah, I mean,” she started, unsure of how to answer that. “It was just how it happened, I was supposed to have breakfast but fell into…  _ here  _ before I did.” Sybil waved her hand vaguely for the word ‘here,’ hoping to get her point across.

“Huh. You’re my age, right? I thought I’d have to go after your parents or something. Or maybe that old captain dude.”

Sybil’s stomach dropped and she bitterly bit into a piece of pancake. She swallowed and spoke with the fork held between her teeth. “Nah, Cap'n's fine. He's great. My parents though, nah. I haven't seen them in a while. But you still could anyway ‘cause they suck, so.”

“It’s on, then! Anyone who hurts you is gonna have to go through me.” Tide grabbed a second fork right out of Lace’s hand, much to her annoyance.

“I was eating with that,” Lace said with an annoyed pout. Sybil watched the two of them curiously as she poked at what little food was still remaining.

“Forgive me, oh great one, for I need your tool in aid to best some cruel adversaries.” Tide spoke dramatically as they waved the forks around in their hands.

“And you need… my fork to do it.” Lace said, more of a statement than a question.

“Of course! With your fork, you lend me the power and strength to take them on and right the wrongs done to our good friend Sybil. And now…” Tide deftly twirled the forks between their fingers before dramatically posing with them as if they were preparing for battle. “I have become  _ Forks of Nature _ , dual-wielding fork assassin of the night.”

Before she knew it was happening, Sybil burst into laughter. She wasn’t sure if it was the pun, or how dramatic Tide had been, or how pouty Lace seemed at their antics, or maybe even just the stress of the situation surfacing in strange ways… but she let herself laugh.

As her laughter died down, she looked back toward the octolings in front of her. Tide had a smile on their face, pride evident in their expression. “And that,” they declared, stabbing Lace’s fork back into her stack of pancakes, “is how it’s done.”

Lace was looking out the window, a napkin held firmly against her face. It looked more like she was trying to hide her mouth than wipe her face, and she had a strange expression. Sybil just chuckled a bit more and smiled when Lace looked her way.

“You’re sweet, Tide,” Sybil said once her laughter had died down. “You definitely don’t have to try and  _ go after _ them or anything. And they don’t really matter now. Er, well, obviously they don’t  _ now _ , given we are who knows where under the ocean, but, in general.”

“But the point is I can and would.” Tide said matter-of-factly before taking a large bite directly from their ice cream. Sybil found that a little unnerving and her body felt colder just watching them do that —  _ Wouldn’t that be super cold? _ — but she was touched by the sentiment regardless.

Sybil poked at her food as she thought about it. She had been gone for, cod, almost two years now, right? It was hard to even remember what her family looked like.  _ Good riddance, _ she thought as she stabbed a portion of eggs, fork striking the glass plate with more force than she had intended. What amount of good did they  _ ever  _ do for her?

“Well, if the chance ever arises, you have my permission,” she said quietly, lifting her fork and taking a bite of eggs. It was an empty promise and she knew it, so she had no reservation in agreeing to something like that. And even if it  _ wasn’t  _ an empty promise, she’d spent long enough staying away from her family and intended to keep it that way. Still, it was nice to talk about it like this.

Realizing Lace had been silent for a while, Sybil lifted her head. The octoling didn’t have her dishes in front of her — those had been neatly stacked and moved to the side of the table — instead, she had the box Iso Padre had given her in front of her, lid open as she observed the few mem cakes one at a time, turning them. Sybil hadn’t noticed before, but they had a faint shimmer when the light hit them just right.

“Damn, I missed eating here.” Tide finished their own food and neatly stacked their dishware as Lace had, sliding the stack to join the other one. “My dad used to take me here sometimes before schooling. That or doughnuts. Ugh, now I want doughnuts…”

Sybil realized at this point she was the only one with food left and ate what was left, despite her appetite starting to wane. This was the first she had eaten today, after all, and she wanted to make the effort to finish it. She added her dishes to the two stacks on the table.

“Anyway, if we’re all done, ready to head to the apartment?” They asked. Sybil nodded and the two of them looked to Lace. She remained silent, fixated on the Octotrooper mem cake in her hand. Tide elbowed her, prompting her to start.

“Ow— what?” She said, annoyance evident in her voice as she rubbed her arm.

“Now it’s your turn to return to Earth,” Tide said. “Are you ready to go?”

“Yeah, sure.” Lace tucked the mem cake pack into the box and closed it. “I’m ready.”

* * *

Closing the door and locking it, Sybil sighed and rested her forehead on the wood. The three of them had all just arrived at Tide’s apartment a little bit ago, and after some brief conversation she had excused herself to take a shower. Tide had been kind enough to provide some clothes for her to sleep in until they could go shopping tomorrow, and Sybil dropped them onto the counter for the time being, the clothes piled up in an untidy heap.  


She stared herself down in the mirror and noticed just how tired she looked. It had been an incredibly long day and she already hadn’t slept much the night before. Her sleeping habits were already bad normally, finding herself easily startled by loud noises or waking herself up from unpleasant dreams. Sighing aloud, she realized it wasn’t likely to be any different tonight either, given the unfamiliar environment she found herself in.  


Not bothering to remove her clothes, she stepped into the bathtub and drew her knees close to her chest. The cool metal sent chills down her body and she shivered as she hugged herself tightly. Stress and anxiety washed over her, gnawing at the insides of her stomach until she felt weak. 

The reality of her situation that rested heavily on her shoulders played at the edges of her mind until it was all she could think about.

She had tried, at the very least, to hold herself together for Lace's sake. Sybil couldn't even begin to imagine how she must be feeling herself. Memories completely gone, being followed around by someone she saw as a stranger, told that completing tests was her best and possibly  _ only _ chance of regaining those lost memories… Sybil knew Lace, she knew that despite her tough facade she was probably very overwhelmed with a lack of information and so much to think about all at once.

But it was hard on her too, being ripped away from what was so familiar. Thinking she’d lost a friend, not knowing where she was, having to stay on the sidelines unable to do anything but watch as Lace and their new friend Tide had to go through strenuous tests?

_ Cod, I’m so fucking  _ selfish, Sybil thought. It was selfish to be so focused on her own feelings, to feel bad about Lace not remembering her. And why would she have remembered her, anyway?  _ I’m a nobody, Agent Three means nothing. Agent Three  _ is  _ nothing. I’m only pretending, why can’t anyone see that I’m a fraud? _

No, this wasn’t fair, she wasn’t being fair to herself. But…

_ But I  _ am  _ nothing. I’m just so… stupid and selfish and worthless. And I can’t even help it when this kind of thing happens. I’m just… _

Sybil’s thoughts spiralled further and further until she couldn’t stop them anymore. Her body was wracked with heavy, unstable breathing, and tears pushed at the edges of her eyes.

Turning on the water, she let it soak through her clothes and she cried quietly, holding back sobs that she desperately hoped no one could hear.

Sybil’s breathing evened out eventually, tears running dry as she let the water run over her. She didn’t realize how long it had been until the water suddenly became noticeably cold. Panicking, she fumbled with the unfamiliar dial to shut the water off as quickly as possible, sighing in relief when it stopped. Sybil took a breath and centered herself, trying to relax.  _ You’re okay, you’re fine. _

Sybil stood up and groaned, realizing that she  _ really  _ should have taken her clothes off. Luckily, most of her clothing was fine given the material it was made out of, but her coat was heavy with how much water it had absorbed into the fabric.

_ Taking this off is going to be a pain. _

After a few minutes of struggling to peel the heavy, wet coat off of herself — the fabric stubbornly clinging to her skin — she managed to get it off. She tossed it over the rack in the shower until she could get it to the washer, letting the water drip back into the tub. The wristband had nearly been taken off along with her coat, and she rolled it up to her fingers, tossing it around her thumb a few times to get rid of the excess water clinging to it.

Remembering that she still needed to remove her contact lenses, she fished out the contact lens case from her pocket. She took them out and placed them in the case, closing it and deciding to leave it on the counter along with her wristband and spinner ring.  _ Hopefully it’s fine to leave this stuff with the other things on the counter? _

She finished changing into the clothes Tide gave her and looked at the mirror, letting her vision adjust. The loose shorts she had been given weren’t visible at all, completely covered by the long shirt that ended at her knees. The shirt however was massive and, as Sybil found when she raised her arms into the air, had six different sleeves. 

_ This must have belonged to Tide’s dad, _ she thought, looking over the shirt in the mirror. Before she had left to shower, she had noticed a few photos adorning the walls. They mostly consisted of an octoling — presumably Tide — at various ages, but sometimes an isopod could be seen in the photos as well. And Tide had called Iso Padre their uncle, so…

_ An octoling raised by an isopod, huh… was Tide completely isolated from other Octarians? They do seem very different from Lace, but… _

She shook her head, deciding that those kinds of thoughts weren’t her business.

Sybil looked herself over in the mirror again. She had let her thoughts wind and twist until she burst, but she thought of how One and Two would remind her that crying can be a form of stress relief, or sometimes it just happened. It made her feel a little better, thinking of her fellow agents and their support, and she did feel a little better now that she had cried.

Maybe she didn’t have to feel so useless and unhelpful in this situation, though. The octolings seemed like they’d have their hands full with testing, sure, but what if Sybil went back to where they had started…? She could try and get information or look for a way out, and she wouldn’t be without contact either, thanks to her headset. It’d be a productive use of her time, even if it meant she wouldn’t be able to see what the others were up to anymore.

Her thoughts were stalled there until she remembered Marina, who earlier in the day had hacked her phone and added the app for her custom chatroom. Sybil figured in any other situation that having her phone hacked would be very concerning, but Marina seemed so sweet and kind that Sybil strangely didn’t mind.

During tests, Pearl and Marina had given their own input and responded to everything as if they could see it too, so Sybil thought it wasn’t unlikely that Marina had also found a way to hack into the same test footage she and the Cap’n had been watching. 

Nodding at her own reflection in the mirror, she resolved to reach out to the hacker later and ask her about it.

Ringing out as much water as she could from her coat, she bundled it up with the rest of her clothes and exited the bathroom. Hoping her coat wasn’t dripping water on the floor, she wandered around the apartment until she found the laundry room and dropped her clothes into the washer. She decided not to start it until Lace could add her own clothes as well.

Heading to the room Tide had said the two of them could share, Sybil walked in to find Lace lounging on the bed, display of the CQ-80 faintly glowing.

Sybil was also very happy to see that there was also a smaller sofa in the room, meaning the two of them didn’t have to worry about the awkward situation that sharing a bed would create.

“Hey,” Lace said, eyes turning toward her. “You were in there a while.”

Sybil grinned sheepishly. “Yyyeah, sorry about that,” she said as she sat on the couch. Lace simply shrugged, not seeming too bothered about it. “What’re you looking at?”

“Metro schedule.” Lace replied, turning back toward the display. “Conductor mentioned testing happened within certain times, and I decided to look over it and see what it was.”

“Hmm?” She tilted her head while looking over at the octoling.

“The train itself runs all the time, but it looks like test stations are only available from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. Then there’s also an hour break in between from 1 to 2 p.m. And today’s Friday, so. Y’know. No more tests for us until Monday.”

“Dang. Well, guess the little guy can’t be working twenty-four seven.” Sybil said with a shrug. Lace only hummed in response, closing the CQ-80.

Lace started to sit up then, stretching her body. “Well, I’m gonna—”

“Heeeey you two!” Tide stood in the doorway then, the door to their room now fully open. “Just wanted to say real quick, I’m probably gonna turn in for the night soon, I don’t normally go to bed this early but it’s been a  _ really  _ weird day and I’m kinda tired. Feel free to eat whatever in the fridge, make yourself at home,  _ etcetera etcetera _ , once we’re all rested up and awake in the morning I’ll give you both a proper tour of the place tomorrow and we can all introduce ourselves before we go shopping to get food and clothes and the like. Cool?”

“Cool,” Sybil and Lace said in unison.

“Cool,” Tide nodded, satisfied. “G’night, surface-dwellers.” They walked back into their room then, leaving as quick as they came.

“Gonna shower,” Lace finished, picking up the clothes Tide had given her.

“Oh yeah,” Sybil said before she was out of earshot, causing the octoling to stop and turn her head back. “Put your clothes in the laundry once you’re done, we can wash them before tomorrow.” Lace nodded and continued down the hall into the bathroom.

The inkling sighed now that she was left alone in the room, leaning back and staring up at the ceiling. Her head rolled to the left to look at the pile of blankets and pillows strewn about on the edge of the couch, her phone and agent headset on top of the mass of fabric. She stood up briefly to adjust her things; headset placed carefully on the worn-looking dresser, pillows and sheets spread on the couch to her liking. 

Satisfied, she laid down on the couch and got comfortable, unlocking her phone. She realized there was still the problem of not having a charger, and her phone currently sat at 41%. Sybil figured it could have been worse, and honestly expected it to be, but the lack of use for most of the day was probably what kept it alive. Probably.

And she still needed to reach out to Marina, but she didn’t really want to do that yet. 

Right now, all she wanted to do was look at her pictures until she felt better, and maybe close her eyes a bit while she did, and  _ wow  _ she was more tired than she realized, and… 

And… 

…

“What’re you looking at?”

“Ah—” Sybil jumped as she was startled awake by the sound of Lace’s voice, her grip loosening and dropping the phone on her chest. “Nothing, it’s— nothing.”

_ Oh cod, I fell asleep? Aaahh how long have I been asleep?? _

Lace’s eyebrow raised. “Sorry, I didn’t realize you were asleep. You were holding the phone still, so. Yeah. Sorry. For scaring you.” 

“Just dozed off, I think,” Sybil said with a sigh, sitting up. “You’re fine.”

She wondered if Lace would accept that and leave it there, but she knew that even if Lace didn’t comment on it or press further, she was probably able to tell something was up. And especially with a reaction like that…

_ After everything today, I’m not really sure if I should show her these, but… _

“It’s… here, just. Yeah.” Sybil handed the phone to Lace and slumped against the couch she was sitting on, wrapping her arms around herself. It was weird, wasn’t it? To be looking at those photos of them together after everything they were going through?

Lace was silent for what felt like far too long. Sybil stared at the wall, at the door, at her feet, her hands, anything to avoid looking at her.

“We really did know each other, huh?” Lace spoke then, finally, and Sybil looked back at her. Her voice was quiet, and she spoke gentler than normal. She continued looking at the phone in her hands, inspecting various photos, a soft thoughtful expression on her face. “I mean, the more I remembered and the more we talked, the more I had a feeling, but this really… this really seals it, huh?”

That wasn’t the reaction Sybil had been expecting. She swallowed, her throat feeling tight, tears threatening to flow again if she wasn’t careful. “Yeah. We did.”

“Why didn’t you show me this? Before, I mean.”

“I don’t know… I was scared, I guess, it wasn’t on my mind, what was on my mind was just…”  _ How confused I was, _ she thought to herself, not daring to say it out loud. “I dunno. Sorry.”

“Hey.” Lace sat next to her, couch quietly creaking with the added weight. “Don’t be sorry. I shouldn’t have acted the way I did. I was kinda scared too. And I think… maybe I still kinda am?” She shrugged, as if she was uncertain.

Sybil hummed in acknowledgement. She knew Lace was naturally very curious and observant; when they had first met she’d had so many questions and was so intrigued by everything she saw on the surface. With her memory disappearing, Sybil figured it made sense that Lace had become defensive and wasn’t sure what to believe.

She also knew that letting others in was not easy for her friend to do; even before all of this she was secretive about her feelings. Looking over at Lace, Sybil wondered if she had thought about what Iso Padre had said to her.

“Then I guess we’ll just get through it together?” Sybil said softly. The words came out more like a question than a statement, confidence fading away. She continued despite the anxiety making her chest feel tight. “I know it’s not easy, but we have each other.”  _ Like we did on the surface _ , she thought. “And Tide, of course. They might be more helpful to you than I am, actually, given they actually take the tests with you.”

“You help more than you think, squid.” Lace smiled at her and Sybil had to hope her hearts wouldn’t beat so hard they fell out of her chest.

_ Even now, cod… This is no time for crushes, Sybil _ , she thought with a feeling she couldn’t quite place.  _ Even with everything going on, I still… I shouldn’t— _

Lace leaned against Sybil, her body rested against the inkling as she continued to look at photos on her phone. The contact was surprising, but comforting. A normal, familiar feeling amidst the nervous feeling everything else gave her so far. Sybil wondered if Lace could feel it too, that comfortable familiarity, even if she couldn’t remember their time together yet.

_Yet_. Sybil held onto that word as tight as she can, trying to remain hopeful.

Silence passed as Lace spent her time looking at all of the photos in the phone. Sybil felt a bit embarrassed as she realized just how many she had taken, but Lace said nothing, looking over them one by one.

“Hey, I know this might be a kind of tall ask, but…” Lace sat up and shifted to face Sybil, sitting with her legs crossed.

“Hm? What is it?” Sybil asked, picking up on the serious tone coming from Lace. 

“Can you tell me about… us? Or me, at least? I don’t really remember,  _ obviously _ and I know it’ll probably come in time, but…” Lace took a breath, looking back down at Sybil’s phone, continuing to look through the photos. 

Sybil waited to see if she had anything else to say, but after a few more moments of silence from the octoling, she answered. “Sure, I can try. What do you want to know?”

* * *

“Yo ‘Rina, you comin’ to bed soon ‘r what?”

Marina turned to Pearl, who looked very obviously drowsy, and offered a small smile. “I’ll be there in a bit. Don’t wait up on me.”

“‘Kay, I won’t. Prob’ly couldn’t even if I tried.” Pearl stretched with a yawn and started for their room, offering a wave with her back turned toward Marina. “Night, love ya.”

Marina giggled. “I love you too, Pearlie.”

She heard a door close and turned back toward her laptop, happy to continue her doodling. It was a recent hobby she had picked up, and it made her happy even if she was still new to it.

Unfortunately, sometimes the motivation picked up later than she’d like. She was enjoying what she had done so far, a drawing of a character from a show she had been enjoying recently, but it was late enough that even Pearl was going to bed. Neither of them maintained the best sleep schedule despite their busy jobs, and each of them had a tendency to get distracted by one thing or another and stay up until late hours of the night. Glancing at the bottom corner of her screen as she took a sip of her tea, she checked the time. Nearly midnight.

_ What was that sound? _ She removed her headphones and listened closely. Hearing nothing after a few seconds of waiting, she almost placed them back over her ears before hearing it again.

_ Oh, my phone! _ Marina picked it up and unlocked it to find unread message notifications for her in the chatroom app. She assumed they’d be from Pearl, but was surprised when she opened the app to find that they weren’t.

_ That’s… that’s Agent Three! _

333  > Hey, Marina, are you there?  
333  > I know it’s probably super late, but I wanted to ask you about something. i’m not familiar with this app, i’m assuming this is the way to message you personally?

Marina tried to contain her excitement as her tentacles flailed around. Agent Three herself was messaging her!

333  > Ah, it’s nothing bad by the way, so don’t worry, i realized that could seem intimidating the way i said that  
333  > and of course, if it’s too late or anything thats fine!! It can wait  
333  > … oh jeez i hope this isn’t waking you up or anything

Marina realized it’d be a good idea to actually respond to Three now. Opening the keyboard, she began typing a message.

DJ_Hyperfresh  > Hi Three! You didn’t wake me up, so no need to worry. I was still up.  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > Honestly, even if I wasn’t awake, you’d be completely free to message me anyway.  
333  > Ah, I’m glad I didn’t wake you up  
333  > and I appreciate that, thanks  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > Np!!  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > So what were you wanting to ask about?  
333  > A couple things actually

Marina leaned back into the couch, taking a sip of her tea as she waited for Three’s message. The tea had cooled drastically now and she took another sip, trying to finish as much as she could before it became too cold to enjoy.

333  > First, you were able to hack the CQ-80 that Eight and Nine are using. Do you think you’d be able to hack other things, too?  
333  > like, my phone, for example  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > Well it depends, did you have something in mind?  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > Ohhh I see! Considering we got this app on your phone earlier, I probably can, yeah!  
333  > … oh. sbcxbznr  
333  > right. duh

She chuckled as she watched the messages come through.  _ Agent Three keysmashes… _

333  > Well, the footage that plays on the train, I’m assuming you and Pearl have access to it now, too, right?  
333  > basically, if its possible, i’d like to be able to access that with my phone, as well.  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > We do! Pearl’s brash commentary wouldn’t be quite the same otherwise.  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > I think I can do that for you, Three! Though, maybe tomorrow, if it can wait?  
333  > it can. I’m not in a rush  
333  > I wanna look around, see if I can get any kind of info while the other two do tests, since I’m not allowed to test myself, yknow  
333  > better than sitting around doing nothing, i think  
333  > I’d like to be able to see what they’re up to thouhg, and it would be helpful if i had the option even when I’m not on the train.

_ So cool… _ Marina thought as she read over the incoming messages from Three.

DJ_Hyperfresh  > Then sometime tomorrow, I’ll look into it after work!  
333  > When do you think that’ll be?  
333  > Ah, again, no rush  
333  > Just wondering ‘cause if you’ll need me to be at my phone, I wanna make sure I’m around  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > Oh, well… I do the news and stage broadcasts, so sometime in the evening once I leave the studio. I’ll try to message you and give you a heads up, sorry I can’t be any more specific than that.  
333  > No, that’s fine.  
333  > And the other thing. you said you had questions for me?  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > Ah, I do! But that might also be a tomorrow thing, since it’s pretty late.  
333  > Sure, whenever you want is fine

Marina saved what she had been working on and closed her laptop, picking up her cup to rinse out what little cold tea remained before leaving it in the sink. She thought of Three as the water from the sink ran from the faucet. Three, as well as two other agents, were somewhere far under the ocean. Nine said they lived down there, but Eight…

Marina opened the app again to send some quick messages, hoping Three hadn’t left in the time she had been up.

DJ_Hyperfresh  > Actually, I do have one quick question for you right now, if that’s okay.  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > It’s not a bad thing! Just since you clarified for me earlier.

There was no response for a while. She realized it was possible Three might have fallen asleep with how late it was, so Marina made her way to the bedroom, entering quietly to avoid waking Pearl. Sitting on the edge of the bed, she reached for the medication on the table next to her. She shook a couple of small blue tablets out of the bottle and placed them in her mouth, leaving them to dissolve under her tongue.

Her phone buzzed with a notification, illuminating the dark room.

333  > Sure, what’s up?  
333  > sorry, nearly forgot about laundry and i needed to throw it in the dryer  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > Nine said they lived down there, under the ocean. What about Eight?  
333  > Uh…  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > Eight doesn’t also come from the Deepsea, does she?

There was a pause.

333  > No, she doesn't. But she didn’t tell me much about where she was from before losing memory, sorry.

All things considered, Marina wasn’t sure if Agent Three was lying or telling the truth. And really, she wouldn’t blame her if she was lying. She didn’t think about it until she saw the two agents testing and finding they were both octolings, but Three had mentioned she had fallen in along with the Cap’n and Eight. If Three knew Eight, then it was possible she was just trying to keep her out of any sort of trouble.

DJ_Hyperfresh  > Alright, thanks for answering, Three.  
DJ_Hyperfresh  > I’m gonna head to bed now, goodnight! I hope you sleep well! ^ v ^  
333  > You too. Goodnight, Marina

She placed her phone down on the table next to her and plugged it in to charge.

_ Eight seems… what if…? _

She faced the bed and found Pearl, in all of her grand 4’9” glory, taking up more than half of the bed. Rolling her eyes with a smile, she carefully nudged the inkling over to make space for herself to lay down. 

Pearl stirred then, waking up for a moment as Marina joined her in bed.

“Took ya long enough, dork.” Pearl mumbled sleepily, her voice quiet and obscured by the pillow her face was pressed against. Marina leaned down and kissed Pearl’s forehead before settling into bed herself.

Her thoughts were becoming hard to keep track of, and it was hard to feel tired enough to sleep. Thoughts of old friends and the domes she once resided in, thoughts of DJ Octavio and Agent Three… She had to be up early for work though, so she snuggled up to Pearl and closed her eyes, laying an arm over the sleeping inkling until a comforting feeling of tiredness took over.

Marina was looking forward to tomorrow, and despite all her racing thoughts, she let herself sleep.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And finally the three get some dang rest. Phew! This was actually finished a while ago, but I waited to post it so I had some buffer writing ready to share while I was occupied during the Art Fight! Once again thank you to my beta readers and my friends who encourage me and my writing!
> 
> I hope you all liked it, lemme know what you think! :]


	5. In Too Deep

Tide woke up agonizingly slowly, eyes adjusting to the low light of their room. The covers were kicked off, bunched up at the edge of their bed, and one of their pillows was on the floor. Coming to their senses as they woke up, they felt an uncomfortable sensation make itself known as they remembered their dream.

One of their hands reached for their face, fingers slowly running along their cheek. Their skin didn’t feel any different, their vision didn’t seem to be impacted in any discernible way… It was terrifying to think that they hadn’t even realized what was happening to them. They weren’t sure what they thought it was at the time— they _had_ been a bit preoccupied with escaping from someone they could barely see, after all— but they certainly didn’t think it could have been… _that_.

They turned over in bed, staring at the wall as they grasped at their bedsheets. They hated thinking about it. If it were up to them, they’d prefer to forget the whole ordeal entirely and leave the pain and fear of what happened yesterday behind them. Their brain was not merciful enough for that though, and instead just _had_ to force them to relive all those events in a sequence of horrific dream-like exaggeration.

Thoughts about the off-limits facilities they were foolish enough to wander into, the blaring alarms, the panic when they woke up, the off-white lab coats, the big needle… All of it had been terrifying as it was, and it was even less pleasant to go through it again.

The worst part was how all of those horrible thoughts were taking their time to resurface. They didn't wake up with a loud cry for help at a danger that wasn't present, there was no sharp fear that shook them all at once. It all came back to them so _slowly_ , in small bits as they woke up, making them feel lethargic and anxious. 

If their dad were there, he’d probably have told them it was stress-related — real problems and thoughts invading their dreams. Tide didn’t need their dad to tell them that though; he _was_ a doctor, after all, and had told them many times how stress could affect the body and mind.

Tide reached for the hoodie they left on the floor the previous night and pulled it into their bed. Curling up, they pulled the soft clothing closer and pressed part of their face into it, desperate to feel any sort of comfort from the somewhat worn fabric. They remained like that for a few moments until eventually they rolled onto their back with a groan, the hoodie pulled over their head as they shifted into octo form.

_I really,_ really _don’t want to think about it._  
  
After a few minutes laying like that, Tide changed back to their octoling form, sitting up in bed with the hoodie now in their lap. They rubbed their eyes and pushed one of their longer tentacles out of their face, hand running along their new scar as they sighed.

Checking the time, they decided it’d be worth getting up and grabbing something to eat. It was likely to be a busy day, what with going shopping for…

“Oh, right!” Tide said aloud, sitting upright. “No time for silly thoughts or dreams like that, I have roommates to help out today.” Getting out of bed, they threw their blankets and pillow back onto it in a lazy pile and began their morning routine.

A few minutes later they strolled out of their room, now dressed in a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt with the logo of some surface band they were unfamiliar with. The door to the other room was closed, so they assumed the other two were still asleep— and honestly, Tide couldn’t blame them; they weren’t the only one who’d had a wild day yesterday— but were instead surprised to see Lace was already awake. She was seated at the dining table and wearing the clothes she’d worn the day before, posture slightly hunched.

“Good morning!” Tide said as they walked into the kitchen. Looking over the counter, they could now see Lace was looking at her mem cakes again; the box Iso had given them was placed to the side. “Looking at the mems again?”

“A bit. I tried the TV for a while, but I wasn’t sure how to get it to work, and I didn’t want to go digging through closets or anything.”

“Oh! Sorry, you’re fine to do whatever. We have board games, video games, some art supplies… We _are_ going shopping today, so if there’s anything you wanna grab we can get it.” Tide looked over at Lace and she nodded, attention still on the mem cakes until she put them into the box with a sigh.

“Want a drink, or anything to eat?” Tide asked, opening a cupboard to pull out a cup. “We have frozen toaster pastry… things, we have uh… toast, eggs, frozen waffles… Damn, it’s a good thing we’re going shopping today.”

Lace shrugged. “Whatever is fine, thank you.”

“Have you ever had cinnamon toast?”

“Dunno.”

“Right, right. Cinnamon toast for the octo it is, then.” 

Tide threw a few pieces of bread in the toaster and paused. “Is Sybil awake yet?”

“No. Well, I don’t think so. She wasn’t when I left the room.”

“‘Kay, didn’t wanna _not_ make her anything if she was awake, y’know?” Tide turned the dial and pushed the lever downward to start the toast. They grabbed a couple of plates, some butter, and the cinnamon-sugar container and placed them on the counter by the toaster as they waited.

A few minutes later Tide brought the plates to the table, both now adorned with cut halves of toast covered in cinnamon and a maybe-excessive amount of sugar. They took a seat across from Lace and set the plate in front of her. “Lace, cinnamon toast. Cinnamon toast, Lace.” Tide gestured back and forth between the plate and the octoling in front of them, who chuckled softly.

_Yesss, I think she’s finally starting to warm up to my jokes!_ Tide thought, happy to get a positive reaction out of her at last.

Lace looked over the food with a brief curiosity before taking a bite, and her eyes seemed to light up as she did. “This is good,” she said finally after finishing the first bite. She took another, and a satisfied grin found its way onto Tide’s face.

“I’m glad you like it. I could show you how to make it next time if you want,” Tide offered. Lace nodded, and the two of them started eating. Tide finished first and took their plate to the kitchen, rinsing it and placing it in the dishwasher. 

Instead of returning to their seat, they walked toward the closet by the front door and opened it up, looking through the various craft supplies and games they had, trying to see if anything would be worth suggesting to Lace. 

Eventually they settled on plucking out a simple pack of playing cards. Lace had been looking their way since they had passed her seat, likely wondering what they were doing, so Tide held up the box of cards as they took their seat again. “Wanna play Go Fish? I can teach you how to play, it’s pretty easy.”

Lace had agreed with a nod, and Tide had started explaining the rules. She asked a few questions — mostly things like _"Why is it called a pool?"_ and _"Is saying 'go fish' really required?"_ — but seemed to grasp the actual rules of the game well enough. (Tide made sure to note that yes, saying ‘go fish’ was _absolutely_ required.)

It hadn’t taken long to cover all the rules, and they had begun to deal the cards when they heard a sound from the hallway, one door opening and another door closing. “Sounds like Sybil’s awake,” they said while they continued to deal, and Lace nodded, still looking toward the hallway for a moment longer before her attention turned back toward her now-dealt hand.

A few more questions later, the two got settled into the game, a few pairs made on each side. Sybil walked out of the hallway slowly, still looking a bit tired.

“Good morning, Sybil!” Tide said, waving at her until she realized the hand she was using was revealing her cards to Lace. “Hey! You _better_ not have looked!”

“I didn’t,” Lace promised. “Got any sevens?” Tide scowled and handed over the seven in their hand.

“You totally cheated,” they mumbled, almost inaudible.

“It was simply a lucky guess,” Lace said with a grin as she placed the pair next to the others.

“Ugh. Rude.” Tide leaned back in their chair with a fake pout. They looked over to see Sybil standing around, seeming unsure of what to do. “Oh, Sybil, I made toast for Lace and myself. I could make some for you if you want, or you could look in the fridge for yourself if you’d like.”

“I’ll see if I can find something to make, don’t worry. Good morning, you two."

The morning continued, the octolings finishing up their game and preparing to start a new one amid playful bickering about what counted as cheating and playing fairly after Lace had won. Sybil paced about in the kitchen opening cupboards and looking through the fridge, and Tide realized she must have decided on eggs once they heard the distinct sound of egg shells being cracked and pulled apart and whisked together.

"Tide, do you have any food allergies or anything?" Sybil asked from the kitchen. 

Tide drew a card from the pool as they responded. "No. Well, not that I'm aware of, anyway," they said. If Sybil said anything else Tide hadn’t heard it, and soon the sound of eggs sizzling and the occasional clatter of silverware filled in the silence during their new game.

Their second game had just finished — Tide priding themself dramatically in their victory — when Sybil walked back to the table. She set down three small plates with forks and a larger plate in the middle of the table with a few small, folded omelettes laid out in a circle. “Here. If you two want any, I made a few extras.”

“Oh wow, these look really good, Sybil, what the hell?” Tide carefully took one for themself with their fork and took a bite, making a sound of satisfaction as they ate it. “They _taste_ good too, jeez. Are you a professional cook or something?”

“Pfft. _Hardly_ ,” Sybil said, waving a hand in the air. She took a seat as she continued, “I’ve just cooked for myself a lot. It’s easy to pick things up through trial and error. Though I’m flattered.”

“Tide’s right though,” Lace added. “These are good. Thanks for making them.”

“Yeah, thanks!” Tide nodded with a smile. “They’re _really_ good, and all we had to eat was toast, so this is really nice.”

Sybil took her own omelette with a bashful smile on her face, but said nothing in response. Tide was happy though; they hadn’t realized how much they missed having company around like this.

“Hey Tide. All the photos around, are those pictures of you and your dad?” Sybil asked.

Tide looked around at all the photos decorating the apartment, though they already knew which photos she was referring to. “Yeah, most of them are me and my dad. Some of them are friends of his or even some pictures of Uncle Iso, but a lot of them are of me, yeah.”

“Aw, so even baby octolings are basically weird little goo monsters…” Sybil commented. “What was your dad like, Tide?”

“Hmm, well… He’s a doctor and he’s very nice. Everyone always thought he was a kinda scary guy though, I think. I mean, don’t get me wrong, a lot of people liked him still and he had plenty of friends, but I think a lot of people kinda saw him and assumed he was always angry or something. His shell makes him look like he has a natural kinda scowl, even though he’s probably the dorkiest and most _embarrassing_ guy ever.”

“He sounds really nice,” Sybil said with a smile, and Tide smiled back. 

“He went up to the surface some months ago, after putting off completing his tests for years to raise me.”

“And you weren’t raised with any other Octarians?” Sybil spoke again, taking a second omelette. “If that’s not too personal, anyway.”

“Huh? No, not really,” Tide replied. “Well, I meant the ‘no, not really’ in response to that being personal, but that’s also a no on being raised around Octarians. My dad found me abandoned as a baby and took me in. I mean, hell, my uncle used to always joke that I was found in the trash. Apparently I was _very_ sick and lucky that I didn’t die outright. 

“He cared for me for a while to see if anyone ever came looking for me. But he said no one ever did, and at that point he had basically adopted me, saying he thought of me as his own child, and it had ‘become clear that I was alone.’” Tide made air quotes as they spoke their father’s words.

Sybil hummed in acknowledgement, and Lace simply nodded.

“But yeah. I was definitely not raised around Octarians. I was raised by a big giant bug at the bottom of the ocean.”

“So, when did you want to go do errands?” Sybil asked. “It’d be nice to get some more clothes so Lace and I don’t have to wear the same things every day.”

“Oh, yeah, right!” Tide stood up, cleaning the dishes off the table. “I’ll need some time to get ready, but we can go whenever we’re all ready to, really.” They quickly delivered the dirty dishes to the kitchen sink, then returned to their room, leaving Sybil and Lace to get ready to go as well.

* * *

Lace and Sybil exited the store with simple paper bags in hand to find Tide waiting outside for them. Lace had picked out a wardrobe based more on function than style, made up of a variety of tops and bottoms of different lengths and styles to accommodate different situations. She had even found a nice, standard backpack which she now wore over her shoulders, chosen because it seemed large enough to hold her box of mem cakes.

She had opted to change into some of the lighter clothing she had picked once she was finished shopping, and she was now dressed in light cargo shorts and a plain-colored tank top. Despite supposedly being at the bottom of the ocean, the Metro wasn’t nearly as cold as she would have expected it to be. It was almost warm - but not intolerably so - and there were even the occasional fans around the area keeping the air chilled.

Walking away from the store, Lace looked over her shoulder at the inkling trailing slightly behind her. Sybil was holding her phone and tapping away at it, her shopping bag from their trip dangling from the crook of her arm. The inkling had spent a longer time looking at the clothing in the store than Lace had, comparing different pieces in the mirror or disappearing into changing rooms or even occasionally stopping to pull out her phone again, but in the end she’d left the store with less clothing picked out than Lace.

Not that she minded waiting on Sybil. It was nice to watch her roam around as she had been and relax a bit as she decided on her own outfit for the day.

It was almost a weird feeling for Lace; picking out clothing solidified the thought in her mind that they were going to be here a while. Yesterday the sheer thought of being somewhere unfamiliar was so stressful and outright _terrifying_ that she had lashed out, thinking it was some kind of trick.

_And now… I’m going clothes shopping._ Exhaling a sigh through her nose as her shoulders fell, she relaxed her form. Things weren’t so bad now, though. Despite basically everything about their current situation, though, things already felt fairly normal. It was reassuring to think everything might actually work out okay for all of them.

Tide was a bit strange but Lace considered them very kind and helpful, willing to help two strangers out. She also figured they might’ve just been happy to spend time with people close to their age, as well; from what Tide had shared, it didn’t seem like there were many kids that they’d known growing up. And Sybil…

Well, she still couldn’t remember anything about Sybil and it made her feel guilty, even despite the inkling assuring her it was fine. The two had stayed up for a while chatting, Sybil telling them about things like their adventures together into the wilderness that rested around Octo Valley, or their time they’d spend sneaking around the captain and the other two agents. 

She had even tried to share a bit of Lace’s own past, though quickly admitted that there wasn’t much to share, since Lace didn’t talk about it much. _Thanks for that, past me._

Lace desperately wished she could remember for herself instead of having to rely on Sybil’s own retelling of everything. Before it was due to a lack of trust, but now… Well, now Lace just felt bad for putting so much onto Sybil to remember and recount.

"What's that?" Tide asked suddenly, pulling Lace out of her thoughts. Lace blinked, taking a moment to process that Tide had walked up to them, then instinctively glanced downward at the feeling of them poking her shoulder. She had a feeling she already knew what Tide was looking at.

On her shoulder was a large mark in the shape of a four-pointed star, bright green in color. Lace supposed it made sense that Tide wouldn't have known what it was, having been raised away from other Octarians, and tried to think of the best way to explain it to the younger octoling. Tide started to walk while waiting for an answer, gesturing for Lace and Sybil to follow.

"It's like," Lace started and then paused, thinking on it longer before continuing, "it's kind of just… a mark. Almost every octoling who was grown from an incubated tentacle has one. Isn't that what this is?" Lace poked back at Tide now, her sharp index finger gently pointing at the small mark on Tide's sanitized tentacle.

"What, that? Is that what that is?" Tide asked, their own hand raising to touch the tentacle. "It's so much smaller than yours though…"

Lace did find that odd, as she thought about it more. Tide might not have been raised by Octarians, but raising an octoling from a tentacle was not something that happened by accident; the process was known for needing specific machinery and conditions. Even then, it wasn’t always successful.

_Raised by a giant isopod who found them alone and dying as an infant… Could they have ended up separate from the Octarians that young? …Is that a thing that_ can _happen?_

Realizing she still hadn’t responded, Lace decided she could put it off for later, hopefully with some new memories to consider along with her thoughts. “Yeah. I’d guess so, anyway. Unless you just got hurt as a kid in a really specific way. Or did it happen when you were… you know?”

"What?” Tide appeared as though they were about to trip but steadied themself quickly. “No, I _have_ always had it, I think. Sooo it's like a scar or something? From being cut?"

"Well, I don't know… Maybe?" Lace shrugged, unsure if that could be considered a fitting description. “I think it might be more accurate to call it a birthmark.”

Tide brought their hand to their face with a ‘hmm’, seemingly considering that. “Hey, what does the word ‘idle’ mean?”

Lace took a moment to respond, taken slightly off guard by the sudden change in topic. “When something or someone is doing nothing, they’re idling–”

“What?” Tide shook their head. “No, sorry, I mean… sorry. You speak Octarian, right? Does it mean anything in Octarian? If you remember it, anyway.”

“I know it. I don’t remember learning it, but I still _know_ it,” Lace said. “Anyway, I don’t think that’s really a word in Octarian. Why?”  
  
Tide was silent for a moment then shrugged it off. “No reason.” Lace considered pressing the topic a bit more, but she hesitated; she didn’t want to pry or poke into business that wasn’t her own. Tide didn’t seem the type to ask an unprompted question like that for no reason, though, and she guessed there was probably more behind it than the noncommittal shrug the small octoling gave her.

In her hesitation she lost the opportunity to press the subject, as Tide had now run ahead to their next destination. _Maybe another time, when it’s just the two of us._

“Welcome toooo…” Tide looked as though they were about to make a gesture with their arms but stopped, their expression falling into a look of confusion as they looked around. “Where’d Sybil go?”

Lace felt a panic in her chest the moment Tide said those words. In the midst of their conversation she had forgotten the inkling had been quietly trailing behind them. Turning her head quickly, she confirmed Sybil was no longer there. She began searching frantically, quickly scanning the crowds and places around them.

_Did something happen to her? What if she got lost, or what if one of those sanitized Octarians got her? Can they come this far into the city? Sybil always seems so nervous, what if something happened and she was alone and—_

“Oh, there she is!” Tide said, and Lace turned to look in the direction Tide was now sprinting toward.

There she stood, fine and unharmed a small distance away, and Lace’s breath stopped for a moment as she watched her.

Sybil was alone in a small seating area made of simple iron benches and swings. A quaint, stone water fountain stood in the center of the space, the streaming water aglow with changing neon lights not unlike the lights that adorned the rest of the city. The inkling looked as though she was having a moment to herself, turning in small circles as she observed the flickering lights and sprawling plants of the small area she had found herself in.

_She’s fine_ , Lace thought, the panic subsiding. She watched with a smile as Tide ran over to Sybil and got her attention. The two turned,Tide pointing in Lace’s direction and then to the building behind her as they came over to rejoin her.

“Sorry,” Sybil said once she was beside Lace again. “Got a little distracted.”

“It’s fiiine,” Tide said with a wave of their hand. “What matters is you’re both here now and we can finish shopping!”

As Tide ran ahead of the two of them, Lace noticed a figure exiting through the doors they were approaching. Lace wasn’t sure if Tide had noticed them too, but it was too late to call out to them. She watched along with Sybil as Tide stumbled into the other octoling, each of their right shoulders slamming into each other.

Lace felt a pang of apprehension once she realized the other person looked fully sanitized, pale green skin and blue tentacles lashing around. A worn-looking hockey mask was pulled to the side of their head, glowing faintly in the dark of the city.

«Hey, watch wh—» Their voice stopped and they took a step back, the expression on their face changing from angry to something that seemed more confused and startled as they looked down at Tide.

“Uh… Sorry?” Tide responded with a shrug, clearly unsure of what to do or say next.

After several moments of silence the stranger brushed past and walked away curtly, mumbling something too quiet for Lace to hear, but the aggravated tone was clear.

“What was their problem?” Lace asked once she was next to Tide again, feeling defensive over them.  
  
Tide shrugged again, looking at the back of the stranger as they stormed away until they turned a corner. “I dunno. That was, uh… that was odd. Was that Octarian?”

“Yeah. It was.” Lace said with a shrug. “Whatever they said was cut off, though.”

“Huh. Well, anyway… Let’s try this again, shall we?” Tide said with a grin. Running a few more paces to the front of the store and standing in front of it, they gestured toward the doors in a grandiose manner. “Welcome, friends… to Malmart!”

Lace looked up from where Tide was standing. Above them was a sign written with strange text that looked close enough to inklish characters spelling out ‘Malmart’, though the first letter was dangling below the others, its light flickering occasionally.

The three of them entered the store and Tide grabbed a shopping cart, gesturing for Lace and Sybil to put their other bags in the cart. As they walked through the store Lace noticed Tide had disappeared, though she was assured by Sybil that they had offered to find something for her.

She noticed Sybil touching all the fabrics of the aisle they had found themselves in before picking out a set of blankets and a pillow and clutching them close with one arm. Lace noticed the inkling kept reaching to touch a soft, dark-gray blanket in the aisle, though Sybil made no move to take it.

“You don’t want to take that one too?” Lace asked, eyebrows raised slightly as she looked down at Sybil.

She shrugged in response and adjusted her sleeves before replying, “I don’t want to take more than I need, and these blankets are enough for sleeping on the couch in the room, I think. I just think it’s nice and soft.”

Lace wanted to suggest that she take it anyway if she liked it enough, but she didn’t want to push Sybil to do something she didn’t want to, so she nodded and continued down the aisle.

The loud sound of glass shattering echoed through the store, all other sounds quieting in turn at the sudden disturbance. Lace could hear others’ conversations come to a pause and the squeaking metal of shopping carts stopping as people's curiosity overtook them, looking for the source of the loud noise. It was quiet enough that the shuffle of footsteps and the soft hum of the fluorescent light above them were audible. 

After a few more silent moments the background noises of the store picked up once again, the silence being forgotten. Lace could just barely pick up the sound of glass scraping across the ground, hopefully being swept up.

It was while she was listening to the sound of the scraping glass that Lace noticed Sybil was no longer matching her pace by her side, and she scanned the few crowds and shelves around her, looking to see if the inkling's interest had been captured by something else as it had been earlier.

Instead, Lace spotted her standing motionless a small distance behind her. She looked tense, shoulders drawn upward and facial expression distant and hard to read. Her hands trembled against the pillow and blankets she was holding, and her stance looked unstable, like she could fall over at any moment. Others passed her by with a strange glance, but if she had noticed them she wasn’t reacting.

"Hey, there you are! Sybil, I found the journal you–" Tide started, rolling in with the shopping cart. Their feet were completely off the ground as the cart’s momentum pulled them along, but they planted their shoes firmly on the floor once they realized what they were looking at. They made a loud squeaking sound as the rubber dragged across the tiled floor.

"Oh," they said, speaking softer than they had before, now stopped with the cart next to Lace. "Is she… is Sybil okay?"

Lace wasn’t sure how to answer that question. She walked back toward the inkling, concern plain on her face. "Sybil? Is everything okay?"

People were staring as they walked past, whispering to themselves with hushed voices and quick glances. Lace wanted to tell them all off, to mind their own business or keep their mouths shut, but something told her raising her voice and making a scene would make things worse, so she tried to ignore everyone as they passed and kept her attention on Sybil.

"Sybil?" Lace asked again. She carefully took Sybil's things and took the girl’s hand with her own free hand. "Come with me, okay?"

Lace led Sybil outside after leaving the items in the shopping basket Tide had, telling them they’d be back in a minute. She led them back to the small, quiet area Sybil had been found in earlier.

The lights pulsed and flickered with changing colors unlike how they had been earlier, and Lace worried it might overwhelm Sybil in her current state. She made no comment if it did and instead took a seat on one of the swinging benches, the metal chains giving a faint squeaking sound in protest as she sat down. 

Lace placed the shopping bag on the ground and crouched down in front of Sybil, her boots drawn together as she balanced her weight. She looked over Sybil, trying to see if she could tell how she was feeling; her breathing was erratic, and she anxiously grasped at the sleeves of her new shirt. She had begun muttering, soft 'sorry's barely audible under the rush of water from the nearby fountain. 

"It's okay, Sybil," Lace tried, unsure of what she could do to help. She was clearly upset but Lace wasn't sure what was bothering her, and when Sybil looked like she was about to cry, Lace started to feel a bit more frantic. Unsure what to do, Lace looked around until her gaze caught a nearby vending machine. 

"I'll be right back, I'm not going far," she said. Sybil nodded weakly, a small acknowledgment but an acknowledgement nonetheless. Lace stood up from her crouched position and walked over to the vending machine.

It was a simple-looking machine, mostly plain and undecorated. The plastic of the front looked as though it was dented inward and many parts of it were covered in scratches of varying sizes, but otherwise the machine seemed to be powered and fully functional. Lace pressed a button displaying a water bottle, the button making a _clunk_ as it sank in and sprang back into place.

Lace clicked her tongue as the machine displayed the words ‘Out of stock’. Unsure of what Sybil might like other than normal water, she selected three flavored drinks at random, hoping Sybil would like at least one of them. The bottles were cold — almost _too_ cold, and the sting of the chill caused Lace to fidget with the drinks in her hands as she walked the short distance back to where Sybil was sitting down.

“Here,” Lace said once she was close enough for Sybil to hear, “pick one, whichever one you want. You should drink something.”

Sybil rubbed her face with the back of her hands and arms and lifted her head. Lace felt a bit of sadness tightening her chest once she met Sybil's eyes, but tried not to let it show that she noticed anything. _She was definitely crying, though…_

She presented the two drinks to Sybil, watching as the inkling looked between the two and reached to take the pink-colored drink. Her hand moved slowly and it almost seemed like she was cautious or hesitant, but Lace stood patiently until Sybil had taken it from her hands.

“Ah– that’s cold,” she said, unscrewing the cap to take a drink. Lace sat next to her and placed the other drinks in one of the bag's pockets, deciding one of them could be given to Tide later.

"Thank you," Sybil added, sniffling softly. "What was the drink for?"

Lace blinked. "It's for you?"

"No, like, why the sports drink?"

"Mhh," Lace hummed in response, not realizing she had misunderstood. She was starting to feel better now that Sybil was speaking again though, and she smiled a bit, looking away from the inkling and toward the ground instead. "I was gonna get water but the machine was out, so I had to take a guess on what you might like from the rest. But if you mean the drink in general, I didn't want you to get dehydrated from, uh… crying."

She couldn’t see her, but she could tell Sybil was staring at her for a moment, and Lace lifted her head to see Sybil’s face had flushed slightly — Or… had it been like that before? She _had_ been crying, after all. — and Lace noticed Sybil fidgeting with the ring on her hand as she looked toward the drink in her hands.

"I– that's–" Sybil’s voice cracked slightly and she cleared her throat. "That's so thoughtful of you. Thank you Lace, really."

Lace felt her tentacles twitch and sway slightly upon hearing that, feeling a sudden bout of embarrassment. "It's no problem, squid," she said, her grin growing into more of a lopsided smile. "That's um, that’s what friends are for, right?"

Sybil smiled appreciatively. “Yeah. Thank you.”

Together they sat in silence for a few minutes, swinging lightly on their suspended bench as Sybil’s legs moved back and forth. The sound of the waterfall nearby was calming, a steady rush of water flowing as lights around them danced and flickered. Lace was starting to think that might have been why Sybil was drawn to this area earlier.

“Hey, Sybil,” Lace broke the silence, and Sybil looked up at her, head tilting to the side slightly. Lace paused for a moment, feeling her tentacles start to curl, but took a breath in and made them still. “On the train, after our first test. I almost forgot about it until now, but it seemed like you wanted to tell me something. What was it?”

Sybil looked lost for a moment— eyebrows drawn together and a slight frown on her face— until recognition replaced her confused expression, eyes flashing slightly. “Oh. Right. It slipped my mind, actually. During the first test you and Tide did together, they were acting… sorta weird.”

“Weird? Weird how?”

“Well, like, I dunno? But… remember how I said there were screens, and we were able to watch your tests?”

“Ugh.” Lace still hated thinking about that. She didn’t even particularly care that they were being watched, but the idea that someone was watching them and she didn’t know who or why… “Yeah, I remember.”

“Well, while the two of you were testing… Tide was acting, well… They almost looked like they were in pain?” Sybil said, phrasing it as though she wasn’t sure of her own statement, and shook her head. “I mean, I don’t know. I haven’t known Tide for very long, so I’m not sure. But if it’s related to their… scarring, then… I don’t know. I didn’t want to bring it up around them because I didn’t want to make them panic, and then the other three tests you two did together, they seemed fine, so…”

“I see.”

“I just think, maybe keep an eye on them? They _did_ slam pretty hard into a wall, and if that was just the first test… I’m just worried about them. They definitely seem like they can hold their own and perform tests about as well as you can, but if that scar is doing something to them…”

“Yeah, I get you.” Lace nodded. “Actually, speaking of, if you’re feeling better we should go catch up to them.”

“Oh, right. Yeah.” Sybil shifted slightly. “Sorry, it’s just, uh…”

“You don’t have to explain if you don’t want to. And no apologizing either, silly.” Lace poked the inkling’s forehead with a grin.

Sybil smiled wide and playfully shoved Lace’s hand away, standing up to walk next to her. “Alright, alright. Thank you, Lace.”

The two walked together back into the Malmart, looking around in search of Tide, until they finally found them in the middle of one of the aisles.

“Hey, welcome back fellow agents.” Tide smiled, though they were holding the scarred side of their head, their blue tentacle curled around their hand. Their other hand was gripping the cart’s handle tightly. “Are you feeling better, Sybil?”

“I am,” Sybil said quietly. “Are _you_ feeling okay?”

“S’just a bit of a headache. Bit of pain behind my eye. Nothing I can’t handle.” Tide said, wheeling the cart around the corner as they picked up some butter from one of the refrigerated shelves.

“That sounds more like a migraine,” Lace said.

“I’ll be fiiiine,” Tide said with a whine. 

Sybil glanced toward Lace with a clear look of worry, and she couldn’t help but think of what they had both talked about not even ten minutes ago.

“If it’s a migraine, you should take it easy,” Lace said, considering her words carefully. “What if you shift into your octo form and get in the cart? Sybil and I can take care of whatever’s left, and even if that doesn’t help the headache, at least then you don’t have to walk.”

Tide scoffed. “I’m not a child, I don’t need to get in the cart. I’m _fine_.”

Lace figured it’d probably be wise to leave them alone, but she was stubborn _and_ concerned for Tide, so she didn’t let it go. “If you don’t get in the cart, I _will_ carry you as you are right now, and that will probably be more embarrassing for you.”

Tide looked like they wanted to protest, but their face contorted into a pained expression, tentacle curling tighter around their hand. “Fine.” They dug around in their pocket and pulled out the CQ-80 and pushed it into Lace’s hands. “Here, there’s some new messages if you want to see them. Might as well take it.”

Opening the display, Lace opened the messages application, though she was briefly distracted by the blurred sight of Tide struggling to stay in the shopping cart.

MC.Princess > Ayo how’s everyone’s day going today  
MC.Princess > Any of y’all got plaaaaans for Saturday?  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Pearl, I don’t think everyone gets up as early as we do every day  
MC.Princess > They can backread! They have eyes!  
CraigCuttlefish > why would we be reading our backs  
MC.Princess > Oh SNAP! Old man alert!  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Pearlie, be nice…  
MC.Princess > I’m not being mean! He’s just old. That’s the facts  
CraigCuttlefish > it’s true i am old  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Well… that just leaves the agents, right?  
MC.Princess > I mean 8 and 9 can’t respond right? They could be awake and we wouldn’t even know it!  
DJ_Hyperfresh > True… Have the agents been okay, Cap’n?  
CraigCuttlefish > i dont know they arent with me  
MC.Princess > YO what do you mean theyre NOT with you!!  
CraigCuttlefish > those kids will be fine and nine said they had a place to stay i think it would do three some good to spend time with people her age  
DJ_Hyperfresh > What about Eight?  
CraigCuttlefish > three never told me about her which we still need to talk about but if she trusts her i will trust her too  
333 > I do  
333 > trust her, i mean  
333 > also. good morning, everyone. i just woke up  


Lace felt a small smile form as she read through Sybil's messages from the morning, finding it cute that the inkling checked in with the others once she woke up earlier.

MC.Princess > What’s poppin’ Three  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Hi Agent Three!  
333 > Hiiii  
333 > To answer Pearl’s question… Our plans aren’t huge or anything, but we are going shopping since it sounds like we’re going to be here a while. Can’t wear my agent clothes all the time  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Makes sense ^v^  
333 > Also, I think Eight and Nine are awake already, because the apartment we’re in smells like food and Eight isn’t in our room anymore.  
MC.Princess > Oooooh! Sharing rooms with your secret friend I see  
MC.Princess > Since you both knew each other before, do you have some like, secret history with her or something?  
333 > What?  
333 > It’s nothing like that, we’re just friends…  
MC.Princess > That isn’t even what I meant. Someone got defensive fast 👀  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Pearlie…  
MC.Princess > Okay, okayyy  
MC.Princess > For real tho Three. We need to get you a better username.  
MC.Princess > What about like, I dunno, Squibble or something??  
333 > Hmm. sure  
■Webmaster■ > 333 has changed their username to Squibble.  
MC.Princess > OMG  
MC.Princess > YESSSS  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Awwwwww  
Squibble > This seems easier to read now, at least  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Anyway… Three, you wanted to talk about stuff, wanna move to a DM so we aren’t blowing up everyone’s notifs?  
Squibble > suree

Having caught up now, Lace placed the CQ-80 in her bag carefully. She had made sure to follow behind Sybil as she caught up on the messages from the morning, and without even realizing it the three of them were now at the checkout counter, Tide’s octo form in what would normally be the seat for children to use.

“Let’s just get home so I can take some medicine and I can feel better for our awesome movie night,” they said. Lace started helping Sybil pull things out of the cart and place them onto the counter to be scanned and bagged.

“Hey, wait a sec…” Tide slipped through the metal and switched to their octoling form, landing in a sitting position in the now-empty basket with a loud, rattling metal sound. They pointed a clawed finger in the direction of the chambered nautilus behind the counter. “You!”

The grocer blinked at Tide as he placed markers and a small journal into a novelty tote bag. “Oh, hey, you’re Kaito’s kid. What happened to your face?”

“None of your business,” Tide huffed, crossing their arms. “And _Kaito’s kid_ has a name, you know.” 

“It’s…” He paused, eyes on the side of his head blinking again as he tapped the shell on his head. Eventually he shrugged and continued bagging the items on the counter. Sybil took the bags and started placing them in front of Tide. “I dunno. You got me.”

“Ugh. All those times you worked with my dad and met me and you still can’t remember my name.” Tide pouted as the bag with the bread was placed into their arms. They adjusted their hold so an arm was free, and with an open hand they gestured between everyone. “Lace, Sybil, this Perry. Perry, Sybil and Lace.”

Lace wordlessly lifted a hand in greeting to the chambered nautilus behind the counter. “Nice to meet you, Perry,” Sybil said as she placed a bag with chips by Tide’s foot.

“Hey, I think I remember you. You were at the clinic yesterday.” Lace noticed Sybil tense up as he spoke, but she relaxed when Perry poked at a trans pride pin on his button up shirt. “Are you both new here?”

“Yeah. Gonna be here for a while,” she said with a nervous smile. Lace thought she might have been fidgeting again, but it was hard to see her hands from where she was standing.

“Huh.” He handed the last of the bags to Sybil. “Well, nice to meet you two. Be seeing you.”

Lace glanced toward the large windows at the front of the store, seeing some distant fog where the city just seemed to end. She wondered what could be out there, if anything. The metro lines that took them to the tests yesterday were surrounded by fog and various floating debris of strange looking objects. Most tests seemed to be far from any solid ground as well, and falling off the edge of a test always activated an automatic recall to a checkpoint; Lace wondered with a looming fear if there was any kind of ground in the fog at all. As solid as everything seemed, Lace realized there was likely an edge to the city— a stopping point at which there was no more city, no more solid ground— and that thought frightened her more than she wanted to admit.

* * *

The fog was thick and pressing, making the shades covering her eyes absolutely necessary. It was already hard enough to see with them on — having to wipe them clean every few seconds — but having them off made it nearly impossible. At least the shades offered some added visibility to their surroundings, allowing Kettle to actually see if she was about to trip over a large metal beam or bump into her companion.

She wiped her red shades clean again with an annoyed flick of her hand. _This was supposed to be an easy mission, cod damn it._

«’Get the octoling, get out of the valley, report back to me,’» Kettle said in a mocking tone, recalling the words of DJ Octavio. «If this was sooo _important_ to him, maybe he should have kept a better eye on things. Then we wouldn’t be in this mess to begin with.»

«Kettle…» Her companion spoke, reaching out to touch her shoulder.

« _What_ ?» Kettle watched as Chip flinched from the bite in her words, blue rings flashing brightly in her tentacles. Kettle sighed. «Look. Sorry. I know I’m angry and I know you’re not good with that and I _know_ that being angry doesn’t help me but I’m just ticked, okay? I’m mad, and I’m _scared_ , and I have no idea where the hell we are right now.»

Chip’s long tentacles twitched nervously, blue rings fading somewhat. «We’ll figure it out. If we fell in, there must be a way out. Plus, with all this tech around…»

«Right, yeah, great, I’m sure this is _technician heaven_ down here for you, huh?» Kettle spoke sarcastically.

«My point was we have resources readily available. We’ll manage. We’ve both dealt with worse than this, I’m sure.»

«Fine, fine,» Kettle relented, kicking a large stone and watching it bounce away, disappearing further into the fog. «I swear, when I get my hands on _Agent Three_ I’m gonna kill that stupid squid.»

Chip was silent for a moment — as she tended to be whenever Agent Three was mentioned — and held her Squee-G close. Kettle wasn’t an idiot; Chip must have had some personal experience with her. It made sense, really; that stupid squid shows up, takes out Octavio, and suddenly her closest friends run off to the surface without her? 

_Harsh. And a buncha useless traitors if you ask me_ , Kettle thought, _but I guess that’s why we’re here to begin with._

«Don’t you think, if we ever even run into Agent Three, we should prioritize Octavio’s mission to find Sushi?» Chip said, words coming out slowly. «I mean, killing Three is a bit extreme and not really the point of our mission…»

«Hm. I guess you’re right. Octavio would love to have that _pest_ captured, I bet.»

«Well–»

«Good thinking, Chippy!» Kettle said, patting the sides of her arms. «If we run into Agent Three, we’ll capture her as a bonus for our mission. Smart.»

Seeing a large crate ahead of her to the right, Kettle pulled out her knife and carved a quick x-shape onto the wood, marking that they had been here before. She examined her knife and tilted it to let the light shine along its surface, seeing her own reflection in the metal.

«Anyway, we unfortunately have a mission to get done, so let’s go and get this over with,» she said, then set off through the fog with intent in her steps.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A new perspective added to the fray... here's where things start to get interesting!
> 
> Thanks as always for reading! Kudos and comments are appreciated, feel free to let me know what you think! :] 💖


	6. What Are You Afraid Of?

Sybil rubbed her eyes, still feeling the faintest hint of sleepiness and trying to keep herself up and awake. She was sitting next to the two octolings as they talked about what the plan was for the day. Cap’n was seated across from them, sound asleep despite their conversation and lack of a comfortable seating position.

“Before we do any tests, we should ask the telephone about getting separate CQ-80s,” Tide said, pointing toward Central Station on the map. “I mean, I get that we take the tests together and everything, but it’d be convenient if we had our own, I think.”

“Sure, we can go there first, then.” Lace selected Central Station on the map, notably quieter than Tide had been. “I think Sybil wanted to go there anyway?”

Sybil nodded. “I wanted to go back to where we first met, or where we fell in. Just, I dunno. Maybe I could find some information that could help us?” She paused, not actually sure what she was hoping to achieve or discover. Maybe it was selfish, but Sybil supposed it was more to stave away her own boredom or feel at least somewhat useful. Her outfit was even made up of her typical agent gear, which she hoped would help her fall into some sort of a routine.

_ If I figure something out along the way, though, it’d all be worth it _ , she thought.  _ It’s the least I can do _ .

The train arrived at the station and the doors opened. Lace and Tide exited, and Sybil stood up to follow them when she was stopped by a shaky bamboo cane held out between her and the doors of the train. “Hold on just a second, Three,” Cap’n said. “I wanna talk to ya for a minute.”

Lace turned back toward the train; Sybil only shrugged and motioned for her to continue and catch up with Tide as the train doors shut in front of them, leaving Sybil separated from the other two.

She sat back down, seated across from the old captain who had stopped her. He placed his cane back in his lap and stroked the tentacles of his beard thoughtfully. The train kicked to life and carried them through an endless tunnel, lights flying by as the train passed.

"Did you kids have a good weekend? I heard from Iso Padre you all had quite the game night." He looked at Sybil and she blinked, realizing that he was making small talk and was looking at her expectantly, waiting for her to answer.

"We did," Sybil said cautiously, unsure what the captain wanted to speak with her about and still feeling anxious.

"Aaand?" he prompted, reaching with his cane to poke her arm. "Tell me about it."

She rolled her eyes at the act, but indulged him anyway. "We played some board games.  _ Uno _ caused a big ruckus between everyone, but… it was nice."

"Good, good." Cap’n crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat, scratching the back of his head. "So, Three, about Eight…"

Sybil's stomach sank.  _ Right, he did say he wanted to talk to me about that _ …

"Jeepers, you look like you've seen a ghost. Lighten up a bit, kiddo. I'm not mad. I just wanted to ask about her."

Sybil sighed and slumped back in her seat, playing with her wristband. "Alright, shoot."

Cap'n lifted his cane toward her again and pretended to take aim at her, then mimed an exaggerated kickback. Sybil rolled her eyes a second time and clutched her vest tightly with one hand, rolling her head back as her other hand rested against her forehead.

"Gasp, oh noooo, how could I be so foolish and get shot by an old man, now I am deeead." She fell limp in her seat and closed her eyes as her head rolled back.

The captain laughed heartily at their shared joke, and Sybil couldn’t help but feel the edges of her lips pulling up into a light smile as she opened her eyes again. His laughter stopped with a contented hum before he spoke, a hint of playfulness still in his voice. “I’ll stop doing it when you stop setting yerself up for it.” Cap’n was quiet for a while before making eye contact with Sybil. “How long have you known her?”

Sybil blinked and broke the eye contact as quickly as it started, thinking it over. “About a year, I think. Maybe a bit less.”

“And no one else knows about her? I know you never really left the Valley, except that one time recently when Two took you to to get that medicine you were talkin’ about.”

“Weeell…” Sybil hesitated but continued as the captain stared at her, awaiting her answer. “Agent One did meet her, too.”

“What? Even she knew? She’s horrible at keeping secrets.” He hummed to himself, his foot tapping lightly on the ground. “Just her?”

“Just her. And not until recently, either. Eight didn’t… she was scared about meeting new people. She was perfectly okay with just staying hidden and exploring the wilderness, mostly. I think she was just trying to adjust to being on the surface at all, and I wasn’t about to rush her into the city when I wasn’t ready to go back to it either. So we stayed in the quiet part of Octo Valley for months, until, well…”

“Until now?” Cap’n suggested.

Sybil nodded, looking down at the floor. “Until now, yeah.”

“Hmmm.” The old man began stroking his beard again. “I’m just surprised you managed to keep her hidden for that long. Between food and the size of your cabin and everything…” He shook his head. “Look, I’m not angry or anything, squiddo. I promise. And you never have to tell me anything you don’t want to, of course, but sometimes you’re a very secretive person. I promise it’s okay to tell me anything you need to, alright?”

Sybil grasped at her shirt and mumbled an acknowledgement. She wasn’t sure if Cap’n had actually heard her, but he stretched out with some audible  _ pops  _ and opened up his flip phone, dismissing her with his free hand. The train pulled into Central Station and the doors opened once more. “Go catch up with your fellow agents, Three. That’s all I wanted to talk to you about.”

She stood up and began to exit the car but stopped and turned so she was facing him, watching him tap away at his phone. “And you’re sure you–”

“You worry too much, Three,” the captain said before she had finished, as if he knew what she was about to ask.

_ Yeah, I should have figured _ , she thought with a faint smile. “Alright, alright.” She stepped backward a few steps — and nearly stumbled — onto the platform, waving as the train disappeared into the tunnel and out of sight.

Lace and Tide weren’t far at all. The two of them were in front of the strange telephone they had spoken with before, the machine swaying and moving unnervingly just as it had before.

“So let me pick up what you are throwing down. You are asking for a second CQ-80?” The robotic voice of the telephone echoed in the now-empty station. Sybil noticed Lace groan as Tide nodded their head.

“Well, yeah, it’d just make more sense, you know? I know we test together and all, but it’d make things easier if we didn’t have to share one.” Tide shrugged, and the gray hoodie they wore rose and fell with the action.

“Didn’t you  **slang_not_found** your CQ-80, test subject 9,999?” It asked, leaning closer toward Tide. The short octoling leaned back and shoved their hands in their jacket’s pocket.

“That’s… different,” Tide said while staring at the ground. Looking back up to stare at the telephone, they continued. “Look, if you can’t help me, or get a new one, then that’s fine, whatever. But it’d make testing easier for us if it were possible for each of us to have our own. Even if our progress is synced up.”

The telephone leaned back and Tide straightened their posture, tentacles swaying slightly. Sybil noticed Lace looking at chat messages and made a note to herself to check them later once she verified Marina’s help hacking her phone worked.

“I’ll see what I can do, homies.” The telephone bounced from side to side, the crank turning in wide circles and the receiver nearly flying out of place.

“Please do not call me that ever again, dear cod,” Lace said, one of her hands covering her face. Sybil couldn’t help but laugh a little at her embarrassment, something Lace took notice of and pouted about. The inkling’s smirk only grew wider at this, and Lace looked away, her long, front tentacle curling inward.  _ Huh. _

“Yesss. Thanks, weird telephone thing. High-five!” Tide smiled and smacked the machine with an open palm. When the telephone jerked backward, they withdrew their hand quickly, pulling it toward their chest.

The telephone sputtered and sparked, causing the three cephalopods to take a step back. One drop of bright, cyan ink hit the ground, followed by several more drops. It began oozing rapidly, bright, swirling ink pooling on the ground below it.

“Oops, it appears that I have  **error** , please return at your earliest  **error** when  **slang_not_found** can  **error error** and **error** .” It continued to spark and leak ink, its robotic speech becoming even harder to comprehend until nothing could be heard but errors and static.

“Uhh… I didn’t mean to do that?” Tide looked between Sybil and Lace, looking nervous.

“I mean, you barely tapped the thing, it’s probably just old. Hopefully someone can fix it. We can probably get on with testing with just the one CQ-80 for now.” Lace pulled up the CQ-80 and looked over the map. “We still have some stations to finish on Line A, and I’d like to wrap those up before doing Line B if that’s fine with you.”

Tide threw a fist in the air. “Sure! I’m up for it.”

“Good luck, you two,” Sybil said, smiling at the two of them. “I’m gonna explore a bit, see if I can find anything useful. Nothing as hard as you two are up to, I’m sure, but…”

“Have fun, Sybil!” Tide rushed forward to hug the inkling, and she staggered backward with a soft  _ oof  _ sound before hugging Tide back. When they backed away from their brief hug, Tide smiled at her. “Now go on and do all your fancy agent stuff in your fancy agent gear and fancy light-up agent shoes.”

Sybil chuckled, lifting her heel off the ground as she looked down at her shoes. “I guess they are basically fancy light-up sneakers, huh?”

“Yeah, and they’re  _ so cool _ .” Tide said, hands curling into fists that bounced as they spoke. “I had light-up shoes once. I think my dad just got them so it’d be easier to pick me out when I got lost in crowds.”

“I think I can see that,” Sybil said while poking Tide’s tentacle playfully. “Anyway, goodbye you two, play  _ nice _ , we don’t want a repeat of what happened last night,” she teased as she walked toward the door they had first exited through just a few days ago. She could hear the two octolings start to bicker about Wii Sports again as she closed the door behind her.

Humming to herself contentedly, she walked down the halls, faint lights trailing behind her with each step she took.

Sybil walked along old, rusted train tracks, her shoes falling upon the old wood of the rails one step after another. The familiar hallway was a little unsettling now that she was getting a better chance to look at it. Caution tape lined the walls, and there were open doorways that lead to nothing She passed posters with eyes that seemed to stare at her and track her every move; piles of unmarked boxes stacked against unused card scanners; broken signs and concrete littering the floor; and even what appeared to be tubes resembling IV lines with that same, bright liquid she had seen when she had first regained consciousness.

Her focus was broken by her phone vibrating in her pocket. Taking it out and unlocking the screen, she tapped into the chatroom app. The phone vibrated once again as she received a new message from Marina through DMs, so the messages must have been really recent. She briefly felt anxious and considered ignoring the messages for now, but shook her head and opened the message from Marina.

DJ_Hyperfresh > Threeeee whatever Pearlie is saying don’t listen aaaaahhh Q_____Q

Sybil blinked.  _ What… _ ?

She returned to the overview of her chatrooms and saw four unread messages from Pearl.  _ Sorry, Marina, but now I’m really curious _ …

MC.Princess  > Heyyy I just wanted to say, thanks for taking the time to talk to ‘Rina yesterday!  
MC.Princess  > It really made her day to get to talk with *the* Agent 3 she always wanted to meet  
MC.Princess  > She was all like “she’s sooooo cool!”  
MC.Princess  > and then she was all like… do you th56zy 6tgsj bsj 4iebi TR TAJB67YEuru

Staring at her phone, she watched as another message came through.

MC.Princess  > TTYIGNM TO TAKEY PHOME HELP-8_2%=^&#  
MC.Princess  > #*3>$^#>&#&#  
MC.Princess  > t  
MC.Princess  >

Sybil chuckled at the blurry image and waited to see if more messages would appear from Marina or Pearl, but instead she was met with a notification alerting her that Lace and Tide had reached a test station. She took a break from her short exploration, leaning against a bare section of the wall and sitting down with her legs crossed.

_ Might as well see if this works before I get too far in. _

By the time Sybil tuned into the feed, Lace and Tide had started their test. She remained silent while making sure it was functioning properly. The cameras seemed to switch occasionally, focusing on certain areas as the two octolings progressed through the test or sometimes even showing a close-up of them. Not unlike how it functioned on the train, really, but it did leave her wondering if those camera changes were automatic.

Watching the two of them in this test had her feeling a bit anxious — mostly considering Lace’s fear of heights, though the octoling did a good job of hiding it — but they passed in no time at all. Sybil watched as the two Super Jumped back to the station platform, Lace holding another mem cake carefully in her hands as Tide hugged her from the side.

Sybil stood up with a stretch and brushed the concrete rubble off of her shorts, deciding she could watch as she explored the tunnels she found herself in. Smoothing the fabric of her vest, she ducked under bright yellow caution tape and continued, the crunch of pebbles scraping against the ground under her feet.

* * *

Adding her third mem cake of the day to her growing collection, Lace shut the box and placed it back in her locker, the box resting atop her neatly folded clothes. She turned her head toward Tide, who was sitting on a bench with their back turned toward her.

Sybil was right to suggest keeping an eye on them. Maverick Station and Bumpin’ 8-Ball Station went fine enough — barring Lace’s own fear of heights and falling, making the Inkjet level especially unpleasant — but the station they had just completed together was difficult. 

The change in Tide’s demeanor once the test had started was immediate and concerning. One moment they were shielding their eyes, commenting on how weirdly bright the test was, but as soon as the test had actually begun it looked like they were struggling to stay on their feet.

“Tide, are you sure you want to do another test? We can stop if you–”

“I’m _fine,_ ” Tide spoke quickly before Lace could continue. Lace’s fingers tapped on the side of her locker as she considered if pushing the topic was a good idea or not. She was almost sure that whatever was wrong with Tide was to do with their scar, and it wasn’t hard to figure out that it was already a touchy subject that they didn’t like to talk about.

Lace sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. “We can do one more, if you want, since I think we’re almost done with Line A.”

Tide turned their neck to look over their shoulder, their face lighting up at the suggestion. “One more?”

“ _One_ more,” Lace said with a nod, holding up a single finger as she spoke before moving her hand to close the locker, letting the automatic lock secure it. “We’ve made a lot of progress today as is, and…”  _ I’m kinda worried about you, _ she thought to herself, “I don’t want us to wear ourselves out by trying to rush it. As much as I’d like to remember as much as I can as soon as possible, we should pace ourselves. But if you really want, we can do one more.”

The other octoling practically jumped from their seat, fist thrown into the air as they charged out of the locker room. Lace smiled and followed with a more casual pace, watching as Tide requested the train’s return and then leaned against the wall.    


She was still worried about them, of course, but if anything went wrong she would be there to help them just like she had in the last level. It wasn’t exactly easy to carry a rainmaker and a whole person at the same time, though. The rainmaker resetting when they were nearly at the goal hadn’t helped any, either. They’d both made it out fine in the end and passed, though, and that was what mattered, right?

“So… this is what the sky on the surface is like?” Tide asked, looking upward and covering their eyes with one hand.

“Hmm… Yes and no,” Lace said, looking up at the ceiling of the test they had just finished. “It’s bright like this, sure, but it’s different. I’m not really sure how to explain it, but,” she lifted a finger in a pointing motion. “You see that tower? Right behind it you can see a section of the large screen is cracked. Then once you see one of the panels is cracked, you start to be able to see all the panels that were always there, even the screens that are perfectly fine and functional.”

Tide nodded as they looked around the test environment. Whatever was giving them trouble before didn’t seem to affect them here, at least. “I mean, I figured it was fake light, but…”

The train arrived at the station then, and the doors parted to let them inside. They took their seats, Tide waving to Cap’n and Iso Padre, who were chatting amongst each other.

“Anyway, that’s not entirely what I mean. I don’t remember much, but back in the Octarian domes, we often had things like this. And not just for sunlight, either. Fog, clouds, stars, whatever simulated sky they wanted to show us. But the real thing is nothing like it. I remember there’s no end to it, it just… goes. Just an open, vast sky.”

When Tide hadn’t responded for a few moments, Lace felt herself growing a little self-conscious at her rambling. Eventually, though, they nodded, sitting back in their seat. “The surface is weird. It’s hard to imagine some bright light like that every single day.”

“Hmm. I mean, yeah, I guess it is. Weird, I mean. The sun’s not hard to get used to.” 

Lace opened up the CQ-80’s map, the soft glow of the projection filtering through the train. She groaned as she selected station A01, noticing it was also considered part of another line.  _ Line G? Just how many of these are there _ ?

The train pulled into the station and the two octolings stepped into the equipper. Tide quickly selected the only option available and the walls dropped, allowing them to move around the platform freely. Lace watched as C.Q. Cumber appeared to stretch out before flattening out on the ground and slowly crawling toward the two of them.  _ Was he sleeping _ ?

“This area is full of ride rails — you must master them to pass this test. You can use your dodge roll to move quickly from one to another. Keep in mind that you can activate ride rails with the explosions caused by Balloon Fish.” As C.Q. Cumber spoke, Lace walked over to the wall and placed a hand on it, looking out and searching for the test. Her eyes trailed along the distant glow of the power eggs until they fell on the large data point that signified the end of the level.

Wait. Ride rails, dodge rolling… Lace realized with a sinking feeling that what she was looking at  _ was  _ the test. A test with almost no solid ground and absolutely nothing in between rails and the vast nothingness beneath them. She took a few steps back from the wall, feeling uneasy.

“That’s the usual advice I give to the test subjects. As for you two-” The vibrant blue sea cucumber lifted his head toward the octolings. “-you will each have to complete the test separately, but you must both complete it within five attempts or you must pay the fee again and start over.”

“We can’t test together this time?” Tide asked. C.Q. Cumber shook the front of his body side to side. “Why?”

“Those are the instructions I was given to provide to you. I do not know anything more than that. With all of that information in mind, who would like to try first?”

_ Maybe I should go first, just to get it over with _ , Lace thought.  _ Plus, if Tide has anymore issues, then _ —

“I will!” Tide’s hand rose as they volunteered and stepped forward, scanning their shared CQ card and pocketing it.

“Tide, wait, I can—”

“Wish me luck!” They were Super Jumping away before Lace could protest any further. She walked up to the walls again and watched as closely as she could, more concerned for Tide than she was afraid of the seemingly endless void below everything. Lace could hear everyone encouraging Tide as they zipped through the test, though she wasn’t paying as much attention to what they were saying in particular.

She didn’t relax until Tide Super Jumped back to the platform, smiling as they pat Lace on the back. 

“Ayoooo check it out, we got a dodge-rolling champion over here! Good job, Nine!” Pearl’s voice echoed from the speakers of their ink tanks.

“Easy peasy,” Tide said, pulling their legs back into a stretch. They seemed perfectly fine, and Lace had watched herself how easily Tide had passed that test, which was reassuring to her. “I’m sure this will be a walk in the park for you. I’m gonna go get changed back into my regular clothes and everything. Meet you back here once you’re done, right?”

_ Oh, right. I still have to do that, too _ . “I haven’t taken my turn yet, shouldn’t you wait just in case we have to try again?” Lace asked, shifting nervously as she kicked the ground with her foot.

“Hmmmnah. It’s fine! You got this, really. Even if you need them, there’s still five chances.” Tide skipped toward the locker room, leaving Lace alone on the platform with C.Q. Cumber. She sighed and stepped up to the turnstile before Super Jumping to the test’s first checkpoint.

Lace looked out toward the test again now that she was actually in it. Some parts of it were hard to see past the giant floating debris, but the general path of the test wasn’t hard to figure out thanks to the occasional Power Egg or Balloon Fish.

“Don’t forget your dodge roll!” Pearl’s voice called out.

“Okay, alright, I got this.” Lace was speaking more to herself than she was replying to Pearl, trying to gain some confidence. “Easy peasy, right?”

“It looks like a fast level, given how fast Tide did it.” Sybil’s voice crackled through the radio now, causing Lace’s ears to perk up. “You’ll be in and out of there in no time.”

Exhaling, Lace raised her weapons and activated the ride rail. She hopped on and felt herself being pulled forward. 

Riding and jumping through squid rings was terrifying, and the first dash track she landed on sent her hurtling much too fast onto the next rail. Dodge-rolling in a panic, she flailed desperately until she landed on a rail with a sigh of relief.

Gaining some confidence and momentum, Lace pushed forward, jumping through Squid Rings and collecting the Power Eggs in her path.

“See if you can activate ride rails by exploding the Balloon Fish!” Marina called out. Lace turned to shoot the object in question, activating the rail.

“You’re doing great, you got this.” Sybil’s encouragement brought a small, nervous smile to Lace’s face. Another checkpoint activated, another Balloon Fish popped.

Her stomach dropped when several Octosnipers revealed themselves, sights set on her. Lace’s mind blanked until she realized with a sick feeling she was plummeting  _ fast _ .

Reappearing at the checkpoint she had just activated a moment prior, Lace gritted her teeth and leapt back onto the rail. Prepared this time, she took aim and fired, taking down the Octosniper in front of her. She jumped from rail to rail, shooting the Octosnipers until none were left.

The end was in sight, now.

She popped another Balloon Fish and shifted into an octopus as she leapt at the nearby platform now covered in a light pink ink. Propelled by the dash tracks, she was flung onto the next set of rails. As she was pulled through the squid rings she shot at the Balloon Fish attached to the wall. It burst with a loud  _ pop _ and Lace swam up the wall, thrown up into the air before landing on top of the pillar.

Letting herself catch her breath on the solid ground, Lace looked forward. There was nothing but a single dash track next to her, leading to several others just like it. At the end she could see one more Balloon Fish, and she guessed she’d have to activate one more ride rail.

That was all that stood between her and the goal. She was _ so close _ . She could _do this_.  


Lace stepped on the machinery and let herself be rushed forward, speeding from one dash track to the next, until she was next to the Balloon Fish. She raised her weapons and fired.

She missed. Falling once again she panicked, her heart pounding in her ears as she turned herself and fired wildly upward.

A stray shot hit its mark, the balloon popped, and Lace felt her boots connect with the rail, sending sparks flying at the contact. She turned and faced the large glowing data point, leaping off the rail. Lace took a moment to sit on the solid platform, giving herself a chance to steady her breathing.  


Raising the Dualie Squelchers one more time, she fired at the fragmented, glowing pieces as they re-assembled themselves and locked into place. Lace pushed it downward by tapping the top with one of the shooters, and a confident feeling rose in her chest as the usual jingle played throughout the test.

Super Jumping back to the beginning, Lace found a mem cake awaiting her there and took it carefully.

Tide was there as well, now changed out of their testing uniform and dressed in the same casual sweatpants and gray hoodie they had been wearing earlier. “See? Not to say I told you so, but…” they teased her with a smug smile.

Lace rolled her eyes. “Yeah, okay. Let me get out of my testing uniform too. Wanna grab lunch?”

“Oh my cod, yes please. I’d kill for a nice cold sandwich right now.” Tide practically pushed her toward the locker room. “Go go, get back into your normal clothes so we can eat.”

Nudging Tide’s hand away, Lace looked at them with a pout. “I’m going, I’m going. I don’t even take as long as you do. Sheesh.”

“Well I’m already changed and you’re not, so who’s the real winner here?” Tide said, crossing their arms and puffing out their chest.

Lace ignored them and turned into the locker room to retrieve her things, but she couldn’t help the smile that pulled at her lips at Tide’s antics.

* * *

For the second time that day, the two of them were headed toward Central Station. Lace would have preferred they head back to the apartment and call it a day, but C.Q. had informed them that the telephone had a second CQ-80 waiting for them. They could have gone to pick it up at “their earliest convenience,” but Tide practically begged to stop there first and Lace relented, selecting the station and adding it to the train’s queue.

While they waited for the train to arrive at their destination, Lace and Tide sat by Iso Padre. He was thoughtfully observing the mem cakes Lace had shown him, each held in a different claw.

“What interesting little cakes,” he said, placing them back in Lace’s hands gently. She tucked them back onto the box currently on her lap and closed the lid, reaching over her shoulder to place it back in her backpack. “Have you remembered anything of significance yet, young squire?”

“Nothing big yet, I think… but just remembering at all is important, I think.” Once they were home Lace planned to start keeping track of things the mem cakes brought to mind or made her remember. She thought — or hoped, at least — that writing everything down might help her work through her thoughts. It also might help her draw some connections between memories and perhaps remember some things on her own, but primarily Lace wanted a way to process everything she was remembering in a tangible way.

“That it is,” Iso Padre agreed with a slow nod. “I remember when Kaito was taking his tests, slowly gaining lost memories. He was always so happy for anything he got, even those that didn’t tell him much.”

“Dad did always like his mem cakes,” Tide said, the ends of their tentacles twirling slightly as they spoke.

Iso Padre laughed. “My brother was a very sentimental man, as I’m sure you noticed, young Tidal. Always so positive, so bright and full of hope and love.”

The car fell into a comfortable silence for a while, accompanied by Iso Padre humming deeply and quietly, seeming like he was lost in thought.

The train pulled into Central Station and the doors opened automatically. Lace stood up with a small wave to Iso Padre. Tide leaned over to hug their uncle before springing to their feet to follow Lace out of the train.

As Lace exited the train her eyes were drawn to a figure that hadn’t been there before. Standing next to the phone was an octoling in a lab coat, who seemed to be making repairs to the phone. She was fully sanitized, like other octolings they'd seen before - but Lace's eyes were more drawn to the goopy mess of ink that seemed to make up her left arm. The ink seemed to resemble the ink the telephone had leaking out of it earlier, though the phone itself had stopped oozing in the time they were gone.

Tide was still standing behind Lace and she stepped forward a few steps to give them a bit of space, though the shorter octoling still hovered closely behind her as she moved forward toward the telephone. It had begun speaking as they approached, though it seemed to be speaking words at random.

“Capricorn upper right shadowed white square scorpio scorpi—” 

The woman standing next to the chattering telephone turned the screwdriver wedged into the side of the machine until there was a slight but audible  _ click _ .

“—ings and welcome back 9,999 and 10,008.” 

Ignoring the telephone, Lace looked over her shoulder at Tide, who was practically hiding behind her. “Are you okay?”

“I’m—” Tide’s voice cracked and they cleared their throat, trying to steady themself. Grabbing at their jacket’s hoodie, they pulled the fabric loosely around the sides of their neck, stepping to stand beside Lace with a stubborn expression on their face. “I’m fine.”

_ They’re lying _ , Lace thought as she looked over Tide. _ Something is  _ very  _ wrong _ .

“I have good news, 9,999. After remotely enabling the distress signal of your lost CQ-80, my assistant retrieved it for you. We have now taken the necessary steps to ensure that you and 10,008 are registered separately with your respective devices. Why don’t you return it to the test subject, assistant?”

The woman, the telephone’s  _ assistant _ , stepped forward almost robotically and slowly presented the CQ-80 with her right hand, waiting for Tide to take it. Lace felt a little unsettled as she noticed this older octoling showed no sign of any emotion at all as she stared at Tide. Even if the person they had ran into a couple days ago wasn’t the friendliest, at least they had expressed  _ some  _ kind of emotion. This was different and…  _ unnerving. _

“Make sure not to lose it this time,” the telephone continued speaking in its robotic manner as its assistant stood there, patient and unmoving. Lace’s attention was drawn to a light as it spoke, and she noticed the woman had a small device in her ear, a small blue light blinking repetitively on its side. “I have no idea what it was doing in a…  _ restricted _ area, but luckily my assistant was close to the distress signal and able to retrieve it for you.” 

Tide remained frozen and Lace noticed that they were trembling, their hand shaking and their tentacles curling inward. She was considering what to do when Tide quickly snatched the CQ-80 out of her hands and dashed back through the train doors. The woman’s hand slowly fell back to her side.

“Say goodbye to the test subject, assistant.” The woman in the lab coat turned her head toward Lace slowly and wordlessly, her glowing eyes making eye contact with Lace’s own. Unsure of what to do, Lace slowly raised her hand and waved at her cautiously. The woman in the lab coat turned without acknowledging the action, and Lace noticed a second earpiece in her other ear, blinking just as the other one had been. She left the area through the same door Sybil had walked through earlier, and Lace silently hoped that the inkling would be fine on her own.

Stepping through the train’s open doors, she boarded the train and looked around for the other octoling. She did not find them immediately, but Iso Padre and Cap’n pointed her in the direction of the next car. Approaching the car doors and looking through the windows, Lace saw Tide sitting alone and staring down blankly at their CQ-80.

Lace hesitated, unsure if she should bother them when something was upsetting them, but resolved to offer to be there for them if they wanted. Stepping through the doors, she entered the dimly lit car. Tide did not turn to face her but their ears perked up as she entered, so Lace knew they were at least  _ aware  _ of her presence. She sat to their left, her hands resting on her legs as she tapped the floor with her feet. They still hadn’t moved or said anything to her, so Lace decided to take the initiative and talk to them.

“Listen, Tide… I know you keep saying nothing is wrong and everything’s fine, but it’s pretty clear something is bothering you. And you don’t have to tell me what it is. You don’t—” 

Tide leaned over to hug Lace before she could finish, head buried into her shoulder. She wrapped her arms around them and hugged them back before speaking again. “I’m not going to make you talk about it. If you ever want to tell me you can, but I won’t make you. You shouldn’t pretend everything is fine either, though. Okay? You are allowed to be sad, or  _ angry _ , or— or whatever emotions you need to feel to process your feelings. But let yourself  _ feel  _ them, don’t hide them away. Alright?”

The other octoling nodded silently against her shoulder and Lace felt a bit of guilt as Tide began to cry, holding her tighter. “Hurts to feel it,” they said quietly, their words muffled against the fabric.

“I know. I know it hurts sometimes,” Lace said almost instinctively, rubbing Tide’s back as they cried. “Sometimes it has to hurt before it feels better and you can let it go.”

“Dunno if it’s that easy,” they said between quick breaths and hiccups.

“It usually isn’t,” Lace said, hugging them tighter. “But it’s a start.” 

Tide was silent again as they hugged. With one hand Lace fished her CQ-80 out of her pocket and selected the station for the city. “How about we go home and like, watch a movie or something? Wasn’t there a pizza place you wanted us to try?” Lace asked, hoping the suggestions would help. “Maybe we could look over the menus or something until dinner time, see if Sybil is interested.”

The shorter octoling sniffled and leaned back, rubbing their eyes with their jacket sleeves. “Yeah,” they said, voice still quiet but a little less shaky, “that would be nice, I think.”

Silence settled in the car, nothing but occasional sniffles from Tide as Lace comforted them, and she watched through the windows in front of her as the train headed toward its destination.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a few of the new characters have reference sheets! [you can check them out here](https://twitter.com/skygummi/status/1300322771264827393), if you like!
> 
> as always, thank you to my beta readers and friends, and to everyone who has stuck around! 💖


	7. Unexpected Encounter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ⚠ **Warning for description of serious injury and blood in this chapter!** ⚠
> 
> Thanks as always to my beta readers and friends, hope you enjoy the chapter!

By the time it was obvious that she had some form of amnesia, Chip was too afraid to ask about it. A majority of the things that Kettle talked about flew right over her head. She _did_ remember Kettle, at least; she was her mischievous, mimic companion who was far too impulsive and hot-headed for her own good. Despite that, Chip remembered her, for better or for worse.

She also remembered DJ Octavio and the mission the two of them had been assigned: _Find the rogue soldier and bring her back_. Akane Takowase was her name, Chip remembered that much from the briefing - though Kettle only seemed to call her Sushi. Beyond the name, Chip wasn’t able to recall anything about her. There was plenty to remember about DJ Octavio, though, including how he had considered her _expendable_ enough for the mission. 

Then there was the “Agent Three” that Kettle would rant about as soon as the agent so much as dared to cross her mind. Chip remembered a loud… concert? Or was it a rave, or a fight? Whatever it was, it still lingered on the edges of her memory: not quite forgotten but not quite within reach, either. Agent Three was there, as far as Chip could remember. Amnesia or not, Chip couldn't tell if Agent Three was bad news or if Kettle simply didn’t like her. Maybe it was both.

Something about the mission was making her feel uneasy though, and it wasn't just the strange place the two of them were effectively stranded in. That certainly didn’t help matters at all, _sure_ , but something about their target made Chip hesitate. Whenever it came to mind she paused and tried to remember whoever Sushi was, though it only seemed to leave her with more questions. Kettle certainly spoke about her as if both of them knew who she was, and Chip was starting to feel _really_ exasperated over it.

_Maybe it’s just because I don’t remember much, but it’s_ really _feeling like I’ve forgotten something important…_

«Go and see if you can find a way out of here, or some food or something.» Kettle waved a hand as she spoke, back still turned toward Chip as she looked over the odd building in front of her. «If we’re going to be stuck here for a while, at least there’s plenty of shelter and whatnot. Some of it even seems to have power.» She turned to face her now, red shades pulled over her eyes. «I’ll probably do some looking around of my own, so… meet back at _the spot_ in a few hours? Four-ish?»

Chip nodded, finding it amusing that Kettle had dubbed the old and misplaced bus stop bench _the spot_ , and turned to walk in the opposite direction, her Squee-G following close behind her. The city the two of them had found themselves in was eerie to say the least; half of the buildings looked empty and fake, the occasional vehicle that drove around making simple loops was also empty, and something about the fake city was familiar.

She decided the fact it felt familiar was the most unsettling part. Something so unnerving should probably not feel _familiar_. Picking up the Squee-G, she held it close to her chest, drumming her fingers along the top of it to help calm herself.

As she paced nervously through the empty city, light glared along the side of her shades, drawing her attention toward an alleyway. The area was dark, panels and various debris resting along the sides of the walls. At the end of the alley sat a nondescript elevator, the only thing setting it apart was how polished it seemed compared to anything else in the broken, rundown city. It was also in a very odd location.

Walking slowly toward the elevator, Chip raised a finger toward the button, pressing it cautiously. The doors opened for her almost immediately, and Chip tapped her foot as she fidgeted, twirling one of her tentacles between her fingers. «Well… Surely this counts as a _something_ , right?» She placed the Squee-G down, putting a hand outward and telling it to _stay_ , before taking a tentative step inside. Glancing at the robot on the ground, she watched as it made small circles on its spot on the ground. Leaving it behind worried her, but if Chip didn't come back and Kettle began to look for her, it'd be a very quick way to figure out where she went.

Chip waved at the thing, a gesture mostly meant for herself, and she pressed the only available button in the elevator. She held onto the rails as the doors closed in front of her and the elevator began to rise slowly and silently toward its unknown destination.

* * *

Sybil remained alert as she walked through the forgotten metro halls, keeping an eye out for any sanitized Octarians that might have been roaming the area.

Before she had left for the day, Sybil had been warned about the strange octoling woman the two octolings had run into yesterday. It sounded as though Lace wasn’t sure if she was dangerous or not, but Tide had reacted strangely and seemed very shaken up about the whole thing. The three of them had spent the night watching a movie until they ended up playing Wii Sports together, but Tide was uncharacteristically quiet the whole time. They seemed like they were doing better once they had gotten some rest at least, but Sybil still worried about the younger octoling.

The whole thing had her nerves a bit worked up though, so she was trying to be more attentive to her surroundings than usual.

Lace was sweet, though, trying to help Tide feel better, and Sybil couldn’t help the small smile she felt thinking about it. The taller octoling had been remembering more lately, even beyond the mem cakes. Sybil hoped that would eventually include herself as well, trying to remain optimistic that Lace would eventually remember their time together in Octo Valley if she was beginning to remember her life in the Octarian domes.

She _also_ hoped that when the octoling did remember, it wouldn’t be so painfully obvious how much of a crush she had. Her chest felt light as she thought about it and she grasped at her vest, glad that no one was around to see her when she was positive her face was warming up with a blush.

_Ugh. I can NOT still be stuck on this._ Sybil kicked a piece of cracked tile, watching as it skipped and stumbled along the dirty ground ahead of her. _She doesn’t remember me. I can’t just, just…_ She shook her head and kicked the piece of tile she had caught up to, watching it tumble out of her path.

Telling Lace how she felt was out of the question for _multiple_ reasons. The first and most important reason was that Lace still didn’t remember their past together at all. Sure, Sybil tried to explain and retell as much as she could for her— which was somehow both so _much_ and so _little_ — but that relied on Sybil’s own accounts of everything. It felt a bit strange to present all of Lace's memories through her own perspective, and the last thing she wanted was for Lace to feel pressured or manipulated if she suddenly confessed the crush she'd been harboring for so long.

Even barring that, though, Sybil did not feel capable of having the confidence to confess to someone in the _slightest_. There was no way she could ever just go and say something like that. _Absolutely not._

Ugh. Why did Lace have to be so _nice_ and _cute_ and _ugghhh_ …

“Hey, Lace,” she spoke aloud in the empty halls, “I actually like you a lot because you’re really charming and sweet and funny and also you’re really _pretty_ , have I ever told you that?” She paused and lifted her phone, watching as the screen focused on Lace, effortlessly lifting a dynamo roller over her shoulders with a confident smile. “Of course I haven’t. Because you’re _you_ and so full of confidence I’m _me_ and nervous and jumpy, and…”

Her thoughts trailed off and she thought back to her brief panic from a few days prior, losing focus on the phone in her hands. Despite all she’d been through, she was _still_ set off by things that reminded her of her family, still left frozen in the headlights at the slightest provocation. She tried to rationalize those thoughts, to remind herself that her trauma wouldn’t just magically disappear even if it got easier with time, but it was still _frustrating_.

One and Two helped a lot, which Sybil would always be grateful for. They were by no means meant to be her therapists and she didn’t ever expect them to be, but they were always ready to lend an ear when she needed to talk. It had been the two of them who helped Sybil come to terms with the fact that she did not need to forgive the people who had hurt her just because they were related, even if she still dealt with a lot of guilt and pain over that thought.

The captain and her fellow agents were more of a family to her than her biological family had ever been. While she wasn’t glad that Cap’n was stuck down here with her, it also helped her feel better to know he was still there to offer guidance or even just to be a goofy old grandfather figure. 

She missed One and Two a lot, though. It had occurred to her more than once that Pearl and Marina might be able to contact them or relay a message, but Sybil hadn’t bothered to ask. For one thing, One and Two were the ever-popular Squid Sisters— that much was obvious before the two had even told her— and she doubted Pearl and Marina would have the means to contact them. Even if they could, that would require revealing the identities of the agents in the first place, and Sybil didn’t want to do that to them.

And what exactly would she have Marina and Pearl say, even if that _were_ a good idea? _Hey, sorry I’ve been awol for almost a week now. I’m fine, me and my secret octoling friend made friends with another octoling, and now they are doing tests together so we can leave, don’t bother trying to come get me because I’m fine?_

“Yeah,” she spoke aloud, looking at her feet as she walked, “because I’m sure that would go over smoothly.”

_I'm a mess, and Lace deserves better than a mess of an inkling._

Sybil’s ears twitched and she turned her head toward a nearby corridor, her spiraling thoughts distracted. She focused on listening, and as she heard Tide’s excited shouting from her phone, she noticed the sound seemed to echo slightly, as if it were playing twice. Heading through the nearby tunnel, the echoing audio grew louder until she could see a screen through a window. The room was dark, lit only by the screen playing inside, and Sybil couldn’t see any doors leading into the room from where she stood. Playing on the screen was the same recording of the tests that Sybil was getting on her phone.

She watched for a while, confused as to why a single, lone screen had been playing the feed from the tests. Sybil shrugged to herself, and started to turn and leave as she saw Lace falling for a painfully long time before finally being called back to the checkpoint— guilt tightening her chest as she watched Lace struggle with one of her biggest fears— when something caught her eye. It was text, a simple, white font floating across the screen.

_Subject 10,008 consistently demonstrates an elevated fear of heights, despite no danger of injury being present._

_What was that?_ Sybil looked down at her phone and saw nothing like it. Looking back up at the screen through the window, she lifted her phone, watching both at the same time. She considered placing her headset back over her ears to listen for any chatter from the others, but left it hanging around her neck for now, worried she would become overstimulated.

The test had been cleared not long after that, the familiar music echoing through the speakers before the screen went blank. 

When the screen changed again, displaying the logo along with Tide and Lace’s test numbers, Sybil was given a large, birds eye view of the test stage, similar to the opening of a televised ink sports match. The test looked like it involved Tower Control in an area Sybil didn’t recognize. The Rainmaker match had been in a replica of Port Mackerel, was this also a replica of a place in Inkopolis that she hadn’t seen before?

The two octolings left together with blasters in hand and Super Jumped to the beginning. Tide stumbled immediately, grabbing onto Lace’s arm. Sybil watched as Lace pointed at the tower, suggesting Tide remained in the ink. They jumped into the ink and remained hidden as Lace dealt with the sanitized octolings that rushed at the tower.

Sybil watched, her arm getting sore enough that she almost lowered her phone, but she stopped as she watched Tide rise from the ink. Lace turned to face them and looked as if she were about to speak, but Sybil watched as Tide shoved Lace off of the tower and into the water under them, sending Lace back to the start.

_Subject 9,999 continues to show signs of response and resistance to partial sanitization._

_Okay, so there's definitely other people watching. That's fun._ Unsettled and distracted with her own sarcastic thoughts, Sybil almost forgot to look toward the stream on her phone to see if the words were there. The message was notably absent from her phone, though, and she took a step back away from the screen, suddenly feeling like it would be a good idea to be _anywhere_ else but here.

_Judging by their displayed behavior, 9,999 may be receiving overlapping frequencies from multiple channels._

Sybil felt light-headed as an unplaceable dread settled over her. Whoever these messages were from, they talked about Tide as if they were some kind of specimen for studying. She wasn't sure if she was angry or nervous at that. And what was up with the talk of frequencies and channels? Sure, Tide struggled with some of the tests, but cod, they weren’t a _robot_. They were a living being who just… happened to have a harder time in certain tests, that was all. 

Tide was on their knees by the time Lace returned to the tower. They were holding the sides of their head and covering their ears as they pulled themself into a ball. Lace crouched down and wrapped an arm around them, though Sybil couldn't tell if it was meant to comfort them or restrain them from acting out again. Settling herself behind the pole of the tower, Lace continued firing blaster shots toward the enemy octolings, splatting them with relative ease given her positioning and situation.

Once the test had been cleared and the music played through the speakers, Sybil watched as both octolings visibly relaxed, Tide holding the scarred side of their face while Lace ran a hand along her long front tentacle, pushing it until it fell back into place. Sybil was almost relieved herself, until a sudden, dreadful feeling took over as she watched another message begin to scroll along the screen.

_Subject 10,008 is quick to protect subject 9,999 even when facing direct harm from 9,999._

Whatever this was, whoever was saying these _things,_ Sybil didn’t like it at all. She watched Lace retrieved her mem cake and boarded the train, pushed forward hastily through the doors by Tide as C.Q. Cumber slowly followed after them. The screen went blank once again shortly after. Someone was definitely watching and… _observing_ the two of them. Morbid curiosity tempted her to stay and see what else was said about the two of them, but fear and anxiety of the situation won her over and she walked away, deciding she could always come back if she ever really felt the need to.

Really, when she thought about it, this was a huge discovery. She’d never actually expected to find much while poking into old tunnels in the strange metro, but discovering someone was actively watching and taking notes on Lace and Tide seemed like it was a big deal.

If only it wasn’t also completely _terrifying_ to think about the implications. Sure, they were test subjects. The telephone blatantly addressed them as such and made no moves to hide it. Even then, though, Sybil couldn’t help but wonder: _who_ was watching them, and why were they making such strange notes about the two octolings?

_I think… maybe I’ll check in on them,_ she thought as she raised her headset over her ears, tapping the button to turn it on, _I’ll just make sure they’re okay and then continue poking around._

She put on the headset and turned it on with a _click_ , listening as Tide rambled on and insisted they were fine. It was hard to hear if Lace was saying much in response, watching as the feed on her phone displayed them exiting the equipper, each holding an Inkbrush as Pearl commented on the weapon choice. Sybil quickly wished the two of them luck when she had her own chance to speak and turned off the headset, letting it hang around her neck again.

She sighed into the cuff of her jacket and started off toward a new, unfamiliar section of the passages she had yet to explore. As she walked she occasionally let her fingers drag along the walls, leaving small marks of green ink in their path. It was an idle, almost instinctive action, creating a trail she could follow if she found herself getting lost.

A few turns into her exploration, Sybil found herself nearly face-to-face with an unfamiliar blue-tentacled octoling and yelped in surprise, nearly tripping over her own feet as she stumbled and ran in the opposite direction. Fighting was out of the question; Sybil wasn’t armed, and even if she had any sort of weapon, she had _no_ idea if any of the Octarians in these areas were connected to a respawn system. She just had to hope she could run fast enough to escape the octoling without over-exerting herself.

As she ran, Sybil hazarded a glance over her shoulder to find the octoling had not moved from her spot. The inkling came to a screeching halt, her shoes dragging across the gritty tiled floor from her momentum. She turned to fully face the octoling, who stood still with hands drawn together and looked right back at her.

Allowing herself the time to catch her breath, Sybil considered her options as she stared back at the octoling down the hallway. The distance made it hard to be certain, but the long tentacles of the other girl looked like they had taken on more of a yellow color and noticeably twitched around. This definitely couldn’t be the person Lace had warned her about; not only did both of her arms look very _normal_ as far as Sybil could tell, but this girl _definitely_ wasn’t sanitized like the Octarians that appeared in Lace and Tide’s tests.

Inhaling through her nose and sighing heavily, Sybil began to walk back in the direction of the octoling. _Maybe she's friendly,_ she thought as she grew closer. _I can always run away if I need to, or call for help._

Standing a few feet apart from her, the two looked over each other silently. Her tentacles seemed to fluctuate between blue and yellow, and she was a bit taller than her. The inkling's attention was also drawn to her clothing, the faint glow from the soft lights woven within the fabric catching her eye. Looking back up but not quite making eye contact, Sybil raised her hand and waved. “Uh, hi?”

The octoling made a humming sound and raised her own hand slowly, waving back. «Hello.»

_Oh. She’s speaking Octarian._ Sybil fidgeted with the ring on her finger as she thought back to the little bits of Octarian that Lace had taught her, mostly very basic or common phrases, and tried to remember how to say she didn’t know much of it. She waved her hand as she spoke. «Hello. Very little Octarian,» she said, hoping it was enough to convey to the tall octoling that her knowledge of the language was extremely limited.

The octoling nodded with a soft giggle, and Sybil hoped it meant she understood. «That is okay.» A clawed finger was raised into a point toward Sybil. «You are Agent Three?» she asked.

Sybil looked down at her agent gear and realized that if this octoling was from the domes of the surface like Lace, it would probably be obvious by her clothing who she was. It made her feel a little wary being recognized, though the octoling still showed no sign of hostility.

Struggling to remember the language, she pointed at herself as she spoke with a nod. «I am Three.»

The other octoling turned her point toward herself now, tapping her chest. «Chihiro Masuno.» She spoke a little more Octarian in a tone that may have been a question, then looked at Sybil expectantly.

Unsure of what she was being asked, Sybil's head tilted to the side. «I am sorry, what?»

Chihiro lifted her right arm and tapped the back of her wrist as she spoke again. Sybil looked to her own wrists, taking notice of the trans pride wristband she had begun wearing habitually. She raised her left arm to mirror Chihiro's right and pointed at the small band. "This?"

The octoling nodded, stepping forward slowly and pointing at it.

"Oh, it's—" Sybil hesitated, a combination of the language difference and her own nerves, but feigned enough confidence to continue, this time in Octarian, «It's, I am, uh…»

«Transgender?» Chihiro asked.

_Oh?_ Sybil blinked, caught off guard. _That sounds almost identical to how it is in Inklish._

«Yes. I am transgender. Trans girl.» The last part specifically wasn't something she had meant to say, but her nerves had her speaking before she could stop herself. Sybil watched as Chihiro's eyes lit up, and she pointed between the wristband and herself.

«Nice! _I_ am a trans girl!» She said, bouncing on the toes of her boots as her tentacles swayed and curled.

«Oh!» Sybil couldn’t help the smile she gave in response to the other girl’s enthusiasm as she bounced in front of her. «Nice,» she repeated, hoping the response didn’t sound too awkward or stiff and doubly hoping whatever she was repeating was an expression of excitement.

Chihiro’s tentacles were almost completely blue again; only the tips remained the same yellow color that matched her fingertips. She stopped bouncing now and looked back down toward Sybil, wringing her hands together before speaking again.

Sybil wasn’t able to understand the entirety of what she said, but did manage to catch «a few hours» and the word «lost.»

«You are lost?» Sybil asked, her head tipping to the side. 

Chihiro nodded. She started speaking, but the words went right over Sybil’s head, and the inkling fidgeted a little nervously. Picking up on that, she tried again, using simpler words and speaking slower. «A door. A box? Up and down.» Her hands moved as she spoke, gesturing with each word.

Oh. That sounded like an elevator, maybe? «Okay, I help.» Sybil nodded and motioned for the octoling to follow.

The two walked in near-silence, Chihiro occasionally humming what sounded suspiciously close to the Calamari Inkantation. Had she been there during the fight against DJ Octavio like Lace had been, or had she heard the song from someplace else?

«What are you doing?» Chihiro asked. Sybil glanced over at the tall octoling girl as she spoke more Octarian, pointing at Sybil’s fingers.

“With my fingers?” Sybil asked in Inklish, her fingers curling in to form a loose fist. When Chihiro looked a bit lost, Sybil pointed at her hand, tapping her fingers. “Fingers.”

“Oh. Fingers?” Chihiro nodded and pointed at her own. «Fingers.»

_You learn something new every day,_ Sybil thought. _Apparently today’s the day I learn the Octarian word for finger_.

Sybil struggled to think of the words to use to explain what she was doing. «Fingers… ink.» She traced a line onto the wall next to her as she spoke. «Not getting lost.»

She hadn’t been thinking about it much, but leaving a trail of ink when exploring was a habit she had picked up as an adventurous kid who didn’t want to get lost in the forests of her hometown. The fact that ink seemed to evaporate over time was preferable, even; it meant that nothing she left was completely permanent. Sybil appreciated not having to worry about cleaning up, and the lessened risk of having her sister find where she had spent all of her time was appreciated as well. _Thanks for covering my tracks, weird little microbe things._

«Oh! That is smart, Agent Three,» Chihiro’s words broke her out of her thoughts. She dragged her index finger along the wall, leaving her own blue mark next to one of Sybil’s green ones. _Huh, it seems like she's left-handed,_ Sybil noted. The inkling watched her as she drew along the walls, various doodles and scribbles and even a large, smiling octopus.

«You can call me Three,» Sybil suggested. Dropping the agent title felt a little less formal and more comfortable. She wasn’t sure if she was friends with this octoling exactly, but she _was_ very friendly. Reaching up to paint the wall herself, Sybil began drawing a rough version of Chihiro’s head out of green ink. «Look. It is you.»

When Chihiro noticed the inkling’s crude ink drawing, she gasped and began painting in an empty portion of the wall that wasn't blocked by various objects or posters. Sybil noticed that it was her who was being drawn now and smiled bashfully. «And that’s you, Three.»

The two laughed for a moment before Chihiro’s expression fell. Sybil looked her over— unsure of if she should say something or if she’d even know what words _to_ say— and decided to try and cheer her up, tapping her shoulder with the palm of her hand as she lightly jogged a few paces ahead. «Tagged,» she said as she threw a look over her shoulder, «you’re it.»

At first the octoling seemed confused, but her expression turned into a grin, and Chihiro started to give chase and Sybil smiled, jogging ahead, remembering to leave marks around the walls as they ran. She almost felt a little childish, and she knew this was a game she wouldn’t win and would likely have to stop playing once her lungs demanded she stop, but that didn’t matter to her right now. Right now she was helping someone forget about whatever was troubling her for a little while, and that was much more important to her.

* * *

The two had exited a strange elevator and Sybil had walked with Chihiro around what appeared to be an abandoned city, old and falling apart. It was mostly silent between their lack of conversation and the creepy surroundings, but Sybil didn’t make any attempt to break it as she looked around curiously. Chihiro seemed lost in thought herself, eyebrows furrowed as she walked forward. Washi— the Squee-G Chihiro had very excitedly introduced to her— followed Chihiro's footsteps, squeaking slightly as it moved over the concrete ground.

Eventually the octoling turned, and she took Sybil’s hands in her own and shook them gently. «Thank you, Three. For helping. You are very nice.» Sybil smiled shyly, but looked down at her hands as Chihiro pushed them back toward her. «I will find a friend here. You should go. It's not safe.»

«Oh. Will you be okay?» Sybil asked, concern evident in her voice.

Chihiro laughed nervously and nodded. « _I_ will be fine. Take care of _yourself_ , squid.» The Octarian word for squid was accompanied with a point and a light smile.

Sybil nodded and took a step backward and waved. «See you, Chihiro.» 

«Goodbye, Agent Three.» The octoling smiled sadly as she waved before turning, walking away as Washi followed behind, scuttling after her.

The inkling ducked behind some rubble against a building and kept an eye on the octoling as she sat on a bench, waiting for her friend. She felt weird watching her like this, but if this area really _was_ unsafe, she wanted to make sure she met up with her friend safely. _It’s like when Goal’s mom would make sure I got into my house safely before leaving,_ Sybil thought with a bitter, sad smile at the irony of the sentiment. _I just wanna make sure nothing bad happens to Chihiro and then I’m good to go_.

After a few minutes, a shorter octoling appeared behind her. Sybil hadn’t seen this new figure approaching and evidently Chihiro hadn’t either, as she jumped with a gasp and then began berating the red-tentacled octoling in Octarian that Sybil couldn’t understand. The short octoling responded in turn and gestured for Chihiro to follow her, the two walking off deeper into the fog until Sybil couldn’t see them anymore.

Sighing in relief, Sybil smiled, happy to see her new acquaintance had met up with her friend without any problems. _She should be safe, now. That’s good_.

As she rode the elevator, Sybil opened her phone and checked on the messages she missed while she had been with Chihiro.

DJ_Hyperfresh > Soooo I have a surprise for our favorite test subjects!  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Since they have their own CQ-80s now,  
MC.Princess > yo check it this is seriously super cool props to ‘Rina  
DJ_Hyperfresh > you two should now be able to type and chat with us in the chatroom!  
DJ_Hyperfresh > It might be a little slower compared to using a keyboard, since you all don’t have that… you’ll have to use the joystick and select each letter individually  
9,999 > whoa  
MC.Princess > YO it makes sense but I forgot that they never Really leave the gc haha! I was not expecting Nine to just like BE here  
9,999 > can i have a different color?  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Of course! Here. Try now?  
9,999 > cool, thanks  
9,999 > waaait a minute can’t i change my username too  
MC.Princess > Nine’s really getting into it!  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Yeah! It’s nice to see.  
DJ_Hyperfresh > What about you, Eight?  
■Webmaster■ > 9,999 has changed their username to Cars2.  
MC.Princess > Cars2???  
Cars2 > eight’s here, she’s  
MC.Princess > ?  
Cars2 > looking over the stations  
Cars2 > pressed send too early  
MC.Princess > Is no one else confused about Cars2  


The elevator doors opened and Sybil stepped out carefully, looking up occasionally to make sure there was no one around waiting to surprise her. Deciding it’d be easier to communicate over the radio while she followed her trail of ink back, she turned it on and pulled it over her head, pocketing her phone as she did.

“Hey, how’s it going, everyone?” Sybil asked.

“Oh, oh oh! Hi Syb— Agent Three!” Tide nearly shouted into the headset. “We got one of the Thangs! Did you see the picture we sent?”

“No, I haven’t yet, sorry. I haven’t checked my phone a lot today.” She said.

"Whaaaat don't apologize, you're doing your own thing and stuff, we get it." Tide responded, a lot quieter this time.

“Agents Eight and Nine are able to chat with us, Three.” Marina added. Sybil had seen that much already, but decided not to comment on it, guessing that Marina felt proud of the fact and wanted to share it.

“And we’re that much closer to the surface, now!” Tide exclaimed. “And L— _Eight’s_ memories too, of course.”

Sybil imagined the shorter octoling throwing a fist in the air or hugging Lace as she talked and she chuckled, fiddling with the wristband on her arm. “That’s great, you guys, I’m glad today's been such a good day,” she said with a soft smile.

The hallway she was in began to rumble, catching Sybil off guard before she could say more, and she looked up just in time to see one of the corridor’s metal supports giving in with a loud groan overhead. She dashed in a panic to dodge out of the way and tripped, thankfully stumbling out of the way of the beam as it crashed loudly behind her.

Taking a shaky breath, she turned back toward the hallway. It hadn’t collapsed entirely, and still looked accessible, but large amounts of debris from the wall and ceiling lay on the ground.

Her ears were ringing, but she could hear voices in her headset and tried to focus on what they were saying. She swallowed heavily, her throat feeling very dry.

“Are you okay S— Three?” She could hear Tide’s voice in her ears, a concerned tone as she spoke shakily. “What happened?”

“I’m okay,” she started, sitting up from where she had tumbled, scratching at an itch on her left leg. “I’m okay, part of the hallway just, just…”

The spot she had scratched on her leg was wet. She lifted her hands to see her fingers colored in a rich cobalt blue color. Her gaze traveled toward a large, metallic edge, covered in blood. Covered in _her own_ blood. “Ah…”

Looking down at her leg, her face paled and she inhaled sharply, stomach feeling extremely weak. There was a large, open gash in her leg and it was losing a _lot_ of blood. She tested lifting her leg with her hands, but let out a cry as the movement bent the lower part of her leg backward and tore through more skin.

“Sybil?” Lace’s voice came through the speakers now, agent number forgotten. “ _Sybil_ , what’s wrong?”

The pain was starting to make itself apparent and Sybil struggled to speak. “Leg,” she gasped out, her breathing becoming erratic as fear and pain washed over her. “M-my leg was cut. Bad.” Sybil couldn’t help the whimper that escaped her throat as tears pricked at the edges of her eyes.

_No no no you can’t cry. You can_ not _cry. That is the_ least _helpful thing you could do for yourself in this situation right now_. Even in a situation like this, her father’s anger and outrage rushed around her head and she began to feel dizzy.

Sybil heard several panicked voices in her ear all trying to talk over each other. It didn’t do anything to help her anxiety, and she almost wanted to turn the radio off. She knew that would just cause an even larger panic for everyone else though, so instead she ignored them and spoke, wanting to make sure she explained where she was as soon as possible.

“In the tunnels at Central Station. There’s a trail.” She inhaled and exhaled slowly and deliberately, trying to remain calm enough to communicate. “If someone can get me, you can follow the ink. If no one is able to, I can try to—.”

“Agent Three, do not even think about trying to drag yourself back here.” Cap’n spoke, taking a serious tone that she rarely ever heard from the old man. 

“I just meant if no one else can—”

“That is an order. _Stay put_.” His words were firm and stern, and Sybil knew he was right to tell her to stay, even if she didn’t want to admit she needed the help. “Agent Nine, does the city have any kind of emergency medical service?”

“They… they don’t operate outside of the city.” Tide sounded nervous, speaking faster than normal. “Serious injuries in test environments are handled by employees of the tests or something, and with the checkpoints nothing serious usually happens anyway.”

Sybil was starting to feel really light-headed and dragged herself to lean against a wall, being careful not to drag her leg.

“Agent Eight, I want you to go get Three and bring her back to the train so she can get back to the city. Nine, go with her in case she needs any help carrying her,” Cap’n ordered, remaining calm as he gave directions to the other agents.

“Already on it,” Lace said. “We’re coming for you, squid.”

“‘Kay,” Sybil managed to croak out, her throat feeling far too dry to be speaking.

Sybil focused her attention on trying to stop the bleeding, hands shaking as she pulled her vest off and removed her coat, tying it around the leg. Wiping her hands on her tank top before hugging herself, she closed her eyes and waited for someone to come find her.

* * *

«So, did you find anythin’?» Kettle asked, pushing her shades up to rest on top of her head. She was leading them back toward the building she had been looking over earlier before Chip had left.

«Huh? What—» Chip cut herself off, remembering that she was wandering around for a reason, nearly having forgotten the whole thing after she had gotten lost and met Agent Three. «Um, no. Sorry.»

Chip nervously anticipated Kettle’s response, but the mimic octoling only shrugged, tentacles swaying lightly. «Meh, it’s alright. I found out some stuff of my own, so not a total loss.» Kettle pushed the doors open, allowing them both inside. It appeared to be a reception area that led to a hallway in one direction and opened up to a dining area in another.

Kettle spoke up again after Chip spent some time looking around. «So the good news is I found this building. It looks like an old motel so it works fine as a camp or base of sorts for now, even if it’s a bit run-down and falling apart. The… not-really-bad-but-kinda- _weird_ news is that there’s basically nothing here. There’s some food in the kitchen so we won’t _starve_ or anything, but otherwise this place is empty as hell.»

Chip hummed to herself as she paced around, running her fingers along the empty walls, leaving an idle trail of ink which Washi dutifully chased after and cleaned.

«You’re humming that song again.» Kettle mumbled. Chip glanced over at her, almost missing what she had said. «Sushi loved humming that tune, too. If I didn’t know any better, I’d almost say you got it from Agent Three, too. Since Sushi apparently thought that inkling was _sooo_ interesting.»

Chip’s tentacles stilled and Kettle laughed, using her elbow to nudge her side. «Aw, c’mon Chippy, I’m just messin’ with you. I know she probably just picked it up from you since you two were basically inseparable. No need to go all _yellow_ on me, I'm just messing around.» Kettle strolled back toward the entrance, drawing her knife and twirling it skillfully between her fingers in a way that could _not_ be considered safe.

Calming herself down, Chip plucked Washi off of the wall and held it close to her. «Right, yeah,» she responded, unsure of what else to say. She was relieved that Kettle didn’t seem to _actually_ think anything of her unease. Chip had actually met _the_ Agent Three today, and she was still a little nervous about that, but the inkling seemed really sweet and kind. Maybe even a little skittish or jumpy, but that wasn't a bad thing.

Chip decided that for now, Kettle didn’t need to know that she had met Agent Three. Something still felt _wrong_ about this mission, and until she could figure out what made her feel so uncomfortable, she would rather _avoid_ having her knife-happy companion trying to hunt down her new maybe-friend, _thank you_. She smiled knowing her friend was safe from harm and clutched the Squee-G closer to her chest.


	8. Open Wounds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello hello and happy Metro Monday! Sorry it's been a little while. I've taken up a few projects recently (zines and things!) so drawing has kept me pretty busy. NaNoWriMo is coming up soon, so I'm hoping I'll be getting a decent buffer going in the next month or so. 
> 
> I hope you all enjoy the update despite the wait, though!

_Lace approached the cluttered, wooden desk and sat in front of it, looking over the things that decorated the surface. A small desk toy here and there, some decorative stationery, a few tattered and worn books… Soft sunlight shone into the room, the thin curtains still allowing plenty of light to peek through the windows with a faint, warm glow over the table. Leaning back in her chair, she looked around, trying to find something to occupy the time._

_As she looked around the small desk space in the little cabin, she found her attention being drawn to one of the shelves. Several rolled up pieces of paper protruded from it, some looking older or more tattered than others. Curiosity took hold and she reached to withdraw one of the scrolls near the top of the stack, holding the paper gently within her fingers. Removing the twine carefully and placing it on top of one of the books, she unrolled the parchment._

_Once the sheet had been unrolled, a few other smaller slips of paper slid forward onto her lap and over her legs, falling silently onto the floor. She picked them up hastily and brushed off stray bits of dirt that had collected on them, though whether they were from the floor or simply rolled up like that Lace wasn’t sure. Carefully pushing the rest of the desk’s clutter to the side, she laid out the pages in front of her on the table and began to look them over._

_The most interesting of the bunch was a schematic of what she recognized as Octarian tech. Recognition meant nothing when it came to actually understanding what she was looking at though, and she found herself furrowing her brow at the diagram. Exhaling a short breath through her nose, she backed away from the paper and straightened her posture. Tucking the pages carefully back within the parchment paper, she rolled it up and re-tied the twine. As she rolled the sheets back together, she noticed faint writing on the back, likely done with a soft pencil: “dome #03”._

_Placing that scroll back and retrieving a new one, she turned it over in her hands. This one read “dome #23,” and Lace placed it down, flat on the table this time as she let the paper unfurl. This scroll contained sheet music, held to the page with small, curling pieces of washi tape. The top of the page was ripped just above the title of the score, and the sides were slightly smudged with printer ink. It didn’t take long for her to figure out that she wasn’t able to read it beyond the length of each note._

_Lace was intrigued by the scrolls and the information they held within. The chair groaned and creaked as she leaned back, looking over at the pile of scrolls. The stack was fairly large, and she wondered if all of them had bits of information inside like the first couple she had retrieved from the pile. What was █████ collecting them for, anyway?_

_Before she could re-roll the paper resting on the table, the door swung open. The loose sheets flew off the table, the breeze from outside whisking them away. Lace lunged to catch them with one hand and held down the mess of papers with her other arm, not wanting anything to be lost. Exhaling with relief when she caught the small pieces of paper, she placed them back on top of the scroll along with the sheet music, rolling it up carefully once again._

_“Oh, sorry!” █████ called out as the door closed. “It’s pretty windy out today, and I know the desk is a mess.” The figure walked closer, and Lace heard a gasp from behind her. “Oh, you’re looking over the scrolls? I actually just found one a bit ago, check it out.”_

_She stepped forward on Lace’s left and spread some papers out in front of her, placing them carefully. Looking them over, it mostly looked like advertisements for clothing and weapons. She picked up the larger page and observed it, flipping it back and forth before placing it back down._

_“This came from the domes?” Lace asked, unsure of what to comment on otherwise. “That’s weird. This is definitely inkling stuff.”_

_“Yeah. It_ is _weird, right? Oh, here’s a fun fact for you.” █████ placed a finger on the image and tapped it. “This is one of my favorite weapons.”_

_“This blue one?” The octoling responded, glancing at the weapon._

_“Yeah. The Classic Squiffer. It’s not the best for inking when it comes to Turf War or anything, but, y’know. I still enjoy it. And ignore that it’s been a few years since I’ve actually played.”_

_Lace hummed as she looked at the image. “Well, I’d love to see you using it sometime, once we get the chance to try a Turf War together.”_

_“Yeah, of course.” The person beside her shuffled. “I’d like that.”_

_Lace turned to face █████, watching as she dropped her ink tank and headset on the floor by the door before letting herself crash into the couch. It made the octoling happy to see █████ look so ███████. Directing her attention toward the papers in front of her again, she touched them softly. Maybe █████ could make a small scrapbook with all of these, that seemed like the kind of thing she would like doing._

* * *

Lace leapt through the doors of the train as soon as they were open, stumbling onto the platform of Central Station and sprinting toward the hallway the inkling had walked into earlier.

Sybil said there would be a trail of ink she could follow, but Lace was struggling to find anything resembling that. Tide jogged ahead of her as she looked around, trying to find any sign of the inkling.

Opening her CQ-80 as she walked, Lace turned on the radio she had been using with the others earlier.

“Sybil, where’s the trail you mentioned?”

No response. The channel was silent; if any of the others had heard her call, they were likely staying quiet to prevent causing any confusion.

Panic began setting in even harder, a heavy weight pulling at Lace’s hearts. Somewhere in the back of her mind a thought bit away at her, reminding her that fear would not help her in this situation and chiding herself for panicking in the first place. The rush of adrenaline and worry crashing over her was far more overpowering though, and she searched around frantically for any signs that Sybil might have been nearby.

Tide quickly reappeared from around a corner and waved Lace over. “Over here, I think I found that trail.”

Lace followed after them, not wasting a moment as Tide led the way. Their pace was faster than hers— something she had long since noticed after testing with them as much as she had— and she quickly lost sight of Tide among the messy, maze-like hallways. Luckily, the ink Sybil had mentioned was clear and visible now, paving the path forward.

Cutting a corner a little too fast and nearly tripping over a small box as she did, Lace found Tide crouched next to Sybil, who was sitting against a wall with her eyes closed. Lace couldn’t help but notice the large amount of blue blood by her legs, though the injury itself was wrapped with what Lace assumed was the black coat she had been wearing earlier. Her headset was around her neck, which would explain the lack of response when she called out earlier.

“She looks like she’s sleeping, maybe… probably her body’s way of dealing with the pain,” Tide said, a slight quiver in their voice as they looked her over, holding a thumb to her wrist. Lace stood on the other side of the inkling, tapping her foot anxiously until Tide drew their hand away and looking up at her. “Can you pick her up? I’m not really strong like you are, so I’m worried I’d hurt her even more.”

Lace nodded and leaned down to crouch beside the inkling on the ground. Wrapping her arms under her back and knees, she picked Sybil up as slowly and gently as she could. The inkling whimpered— a sound that filled Lace with guilt— and opened her eyes a bit, looking up at Lace with a somewhat clouded expression.

“Lace?” she croaked, audible strain in her voice.

“Be careful with her leg,” Tide cut in quickly. Sybil turned to face the other octoling as they talked. “D-don’t let it dangle. I don’t know how bad it is, but considering just how much _blood_ there is it’s probably pretty bad and I don’t want to risk anything— wait sorry I’m talking too much, just, yeah. Yeah.”

“It’s… pretty bad,” Sybil said in response, her voice soft and quiet.

Lace adjusted her hold on the girl in her arms with a nod, trying to ignore the guilt she felt when the inkling winced at the movement. She considered asking if any other position would be better, but decided against it; Sybil would probably be in a lot of pain no matter how she was being carried, so Lace decided it would be best to prioritize keeping her leg supported and getting her somewhere that could help as soon as possible.

She looked back down at Sybil as the two octolings turned to exit the tunnels, carrying her away from the partially-collapsed tunnel. “It’s fine, we’re gonna get you help, alright?” 

Sybil’s eyes closed again and she mumbled something inaudible. 

“What?”

“Sorry,” she repeated, louder this time as she hissed with pain.

Lace opened her mouth but closed it quickly. She almost told Sybil not to worry about it, why on _Earth_ was she trying to _apologize_ right now, but decided against saying anything for the time being. _Focus on getting help. Bicker with the squid later._

Walking briskly— trying to walk slow enough to avoid agitating Sybil’s leg but still moving with a sense of urgency behind her steps— Lace followed behind Tide as they jogged ahead through the tunnels. Tide held the door open for her and Lace stepped through, making her way toward the train. Lace caught a glimpse of the scary octoling woman from before, standing by the thang they had collected earlier in the day, but a groan from Sybil grabbed her attention and she looked away.

Stepping onto the train, Tide was already opening their CQ-80 to request a stop at the city before the doors closed. Lace sat down and adjusted Sybil again, trying to make sure her leg was supported without actively hurting it more. It was clear that she was trying to bear with the pain, her teeth gritted and hands gripping at the vest in her hands, crumpled and balled up. Lace really wished the squid had stayed asleep when she picked her up, because seeing her try so hard to deal with the pain was heart wrenching. _She doesn’t deserve this._

A few other passengers stared or threw glances at the three of them and whispered amongst themselves as the train moved through the vast, watery nothingness. She _really_ wished people would stop staring at Sybil. _And she doesn’t deserve to be stared at or talked about like this, either._ Lace pulled her a little closer, feeling a bit of protectiveness come over her.

For a train that moved through nothing and arrived at any definable destination available within mere minutes at _most,_ the time spent waiting for it to arrive at the city stretched into what felt like hours. Every tangible moment Lace spent holding the hurt inkling felt like it would never end.

When the doors finally opened, Lace nearly shot out of her seat from impatience. Lace was met by Cap’n and a very tall sea angel standing with a stretcher.

“Let Agent Three down there.” The captain said, his expression unreadable as he watched over them all. She placed her slowly and took a step back, letting the paramedic take over, fastening the inkling into it.

Now that she wasn’t holding Sybil, Lace noticed Tide wasn’t with them. It didn’t take her long to find them through the open train doors: they were still standing on the train, and they appeared to be staring at something, though Lace couldn’t see what.

_“Tide!”_ Lace shouted, watching as the shorter octoling jumped and turned back toward her. She felt guilty for shouting— her growing worry and stress causing her to shout their name harsher than she had intended— but there _were_ more pressing matters than whatever Tide was currently looking at. 

Thankfully, Tide didn’t seem too bothered by it, and they hopped through the train doors to stand by her side. Lace made a mental note to apologize for it later regardless.

The sea angel pushed the stretcher, leading Sybil through the streets and to the city’s hospital. It took a near-running pace to keep up with the paramedic, long strides harder to match with shorter legs. Tide seemed to keep up easily enough, though it was more surprising to see that the elder captain seemed to be keeping up as well, even if he seemed to be trailing behind the rest of them. 

Distracting neon lights were cast all around them as they made their way to the hospital, and Lace hoped that Sybil wasn’t too overwhelmed by them all. It wasn’t too long until they entered an area that lacked the amount of lights the rest of the city contained, flashy signs and billboards replaced by simple, soft lights and a sign signifying the hospital was nearby. They approached a large, almost-artsy looking building from what Lace assumed to be the side. As they stepped up to some doors that were labeled _Stretcher Entrance Only,_ Lace hesitated, but continued through the doors after she had watched Tide and Cap’n make their way through the doors after the sea angel, not wanting to be left behind.

* * *

Tide sat beside Lace in the small, dim hospital room, the two of them only just having been allowed in after a long and anxious wait. The inkling’s leg was elevated, and it was also in a cast, so neither of them were actually able to see the wound. Instead, they waited patiently as the gulper eel doctor marked some notes on a clipboard.

Sybil, as far as they could tell, seemed to be doing fine enough now. It had been a few hours since they had arrived, and that meant plenty of time for all sorts of medicine to numb her pain. That or she was just doing a _really_ good job of not showing it, which _was_ possible, but she hadn’t made as much of an effort to hide it earlier on the train. So strong painkillers were almost certainly at play here.

They also vaguely recognized the doctor who scribbled away at the clipboard, the sound of the pen on the paper filling the silence in the room. She was someone their dad had worked with— though her name escaped Tide at the moment, maybe Dr. Flora?— and they had met her occasionally like many of their dad’s other colleagues and co-workers. Though most visits like those were dotted with things like “you’ve gotten so big since I last saw you” or “I remember when you were just a baby,” which was always a bit awkward. Especially awkward when their dad _definitely_ took any chance he had to gush about them. It was always _embarrassing_ and very cliche proud parent stuff.

Luckily for them, there was none of that today, as the doctor focused on her work. “All things considered, it’s not as bad as it could be.” She said, placing her clipboard down and turning to face the inkling laying in the bed. “No sign of infection, but it tore through part of the fibuloing, so you _will_ need to give it time to heal.”

“What’s a fibuloing?” Lace asked. Tide glanced over at the other octoling’s sitting form and found her expression hard to read as always. 

Well, _sure,_ they knew that Lace was concerned— and probably also a bit fretful over the whole thing, if they were to take an educated guess— but her tentacles were so often very… _neutral._ They only swayed a bit between Lace’s own moving and what Tide assumed was natural tentacle movement. _Aren’t octoling tentacles supposed to be expressive?_

“A fibuloing is a myobolic ingraft structure, a series of sturdy muscles found in the body of octolings.” The doctor’s answer brought Tide’s focus back, breaking their thoughts. “And, in Ms. Sword’s case, inklings. It’s responsible for things like keeping your forearm straight or allowing you to stand. The fibuloing is the specific muscle that was torn, the myobolic ingraft structure of the left calf.”

“Oooor you could just call them boings,” Tide offered, shrugging their shoulders. Lace hummed in what they assumed was meant to be acknowledgement, though she didn’t turn to face them.

“Yes, that _is_ the common name for them,” the doctor said. “They’re very important, but lucky for Ms. Swords, they don’t take long to heal, so long as they heal _properly._ It would have been trickier if it was severed altogether, but it didn’t get that far, so we were able to get it stitched up with some ink-fiber. Any questions?”

Sybil blinked slowly, and Tide wondered if she was baked out of her poor squid brain on sedatives. The doctor waited patiently though, until Sybil began to ask her questions. “How long will it take to heal?”

“Given the injury I’d say about two weeks, maybe three at most. I’d like for you to come back in a week though, mostly so we can look over the progress as time goes on and make sure there aren’t any complications.”

Sybil was silent, and fidgeted a little with her hands. Tide watched as her thumb flicked over her index finger, her ring notably absent.

“Well, not that this isn’t all very _interesting_ and all, but I’m gonna be back in a bit.” Tide stood up with a stretch and made sure the sweater tied around their waist was still firmly secured. “Do you want anything, Lace?” The octoling didn’t respond at first, still looking over Sybil. Tide reached down to touch her shoulder lightly.

Lace blinked a few times, tentacles twitching a bit. “Huh? Oh. Uh, I don’t know. What can you even get in hospitals?”

Tide considered explaining, but between the doctor doing her work and Lace seeming to be out of focus, they just shrugged. “You know what, I’ll just bring you back some water or something.” They stepped through the doorway and turned to face the doctor, giving a small wave. “It was nice seeing you again.”

“And it was nice seeing you too again, dear,” she responded, too distracted with her work to draw out the conversation any longer. The sound of pen scratches returned as Tide backed out through the door. “Now, I’m going to write you some notes on how to ensure your leg will heal correctly…”

Her voice faded into the background as Tide strolled down the low-lit hall, different conversations meshing and melding together. They admired some of the murals as they walked, the old familiar paintings adorning the wall with bright, poppy colors, accented with fluorescent strokes that glowed faintly in the minimal darkness the hospital held. 

Some employees actually stopped to greet them as they walked or looked around, and some called their name or waved to them from behind desks or around corners. Tide tried to be polite and wave back, but they weren’t in a very chatty mood, so they excused themself quickly when necessary and continued on their walk through the familiar building.

It was always a bit odd how many people seemed to know them, though it made sense when they considered the amount of times an emergency call for Kaito Pod meant Tide was brought to the hospital along with him. Some days they were left to sit patiently in the lobby, being half-watched by whatever receptionist was around at the time until someone— usually their uncle— arrived while Tide occupied their time with whatever toy they had managed to grasp before being picked up and carried through the door.

_Maybe that wasn’t the most responsible thing ever,_ they thought, _but the other option was leaving me at home alone for who knows how long. And Dad always joked I behaved better here than I did at home. So that would have been worse. Probably._ They chuckled to themself at the thought.

Tide noticed the nearby restroom and walked toward it, pushing through the doors with their elbows. They stepped forward in front of one of the sinks, turning the faucet on and holding their hands underneath the running water. The water trickled into their loosely cupped palms and through the gaps of their fingers, gradually accumulating until they had enough to splash their face. 

Tide held their hands to their face as the cool water ran down their cheeks and chin before withdrawing them and shaking their hands, stray water droplets falling into the sink. Looking over themself in the mirror, they stared into their own eyes and watched their expression fall into something a little more forlorn. Their gaze drifted to the scarred area of their face, and they found themself touching their cheek, rubbing a thumb along the green surface of their skin.

They tried not to pay any mind to how the same people who had greeted them had also flinched or gasped or whispered among themselves upon seeing their face, but it bothered them. Tide didn’t like the way everyone looked at them as if something was wrong with them. The space away from Sybil gave them time to think, and they weren’t sure if they considered that a good thing or not.

_You shouldn’t pretend everything is fine either, though._ Lace’s words pushed into Tide's thoughts and they sighed, eyes falling to the counter as they avoided their own reflection’s stare. 

Lace was right, and admitting that was _hard,_ but it was the kind of brutal honesty that Tide figured they would have needed to hear at some point or another. Tide actually looked up to Lace a lot— they basically considered her an older sister, but hadn’t said anything about it because it’d be _weird_ if the feeling wasn’t mutual— and they wanted to take her advice to heart. Especially since it was clear that she cared for them. 

That didn’t make it any easier, though, and it left Tide with a lot of thoughts to unpack while they were alone in a hospital restroom.

They weren’t ready to leave and go back, so they touched the counter tentatively to make sure it wasn’t wet and hopped up to sit in between two sinks, crossing their legs under them. Tide untied the gray hoodie from their waist and pulled it into their arms, clutching the fabric. Admittedly, they weren’t sure where they were supposed to start when it came to “letting themself feel” what was bothering them, but they figured it was worth trying.

_Well,_ it _happened again today,_ they thought bitterly. That sure was somewhere they could start.

It bothered them how much it affected them and how little it seemed there was to be done about it. Was it completely random, or was something else at play? It had only happened three times out of the fifteen tests they’d taken, so it was hard to get a proper gauge on.

Those octolings in the tests… they _were_ just employees, right? Tide tried to ignore the idea that anything insidious might be going on behind the scenes, but they supposed that ignoring their thoughts was causing problems on its own. 

_Maybe those octolings just… let themselves be controlled or something for the sake of the test. For the sake of testing me and Lace, for being an obstacle we have to see if we can surpass. That could be it, right?_

That didn’t explain what was going on with _them_ , though. It was hard to keep track of what their own brain was apparently trying to do to them when they were trying to resist it. 

_I mean, I shoved Lace into hazard water, for cod’s sake,_ they thought, gripping the hoodie in their hands tighter. _I might as well have just stood up and said “fuck you, my tower” as I shoved her._

They grumbled out loud, tapping their fingers in quick succession along the counter they sat on. Why was this so _hard?_ Thinking about this was just frustrating and somewhat upsetting.

Tide’s thoughts drifted to the octoling they had bumped into over the weekend. They had seen them again on the train earlier, though Tide hadn’t noticed them at first thanks to the panic about Sybil. The strange octoling had been sat in a car alone, a hockey mask pulled to the side of their head as they stared out through the window in front of them and a paper bag of groceries next to their feet.

All things considered, that octoling seemed fine. A bit grumpy, maybe. They didn’t seem to have any problem with their own sanitization, and as far as Tide could tell, they were _completely_ sanitized.

_So why does it happen to me randomly? Is it something I could get better at managing over time, or something…?_

Tide hoped they would have the chance to ask them sometime. They _also_ hoped that the mask-wearing octoling spoke Inklish, because thinking about it, they’d only ever heard the other octoling speak once, and it had been Octarian. Shrugging, Tide decided they could cross that bridge when they got there. The important thing was that they did _technically_ know someone who was sanitized and seemed to be fine.

Their stomach fell as they realized they also knew of someone else who was sanitized and notably _not_ fine.

Tide wasn’t even sure if they could trust their own memories about the whole ordeal. They remembered that woman. They _knew_ she was the one who'd been there when… _this_ had happened to them. So why couldn't they convince themself of that fact? There were a lot of sanitized Octarians in the Deepsea, but that woman…

They could only barely recall what happened. They had opened their eyes— apparently for the first time in a whole _week—_ to see the older, sanitized octoling there, standing very still with a syringe in her hand. And then... something happened. They recalled her grabbing her inky arm and crying out— the word "idle"— then her, standing there, watching Tide in silence as they scrambled out of the room.

That might have been one of the largest reasons they felt so conflicted about it; why would she have stopped? Weren't they supposed to be sanitized? What the hell does "idle" mean? And _oh god what if my arm ends up like that too?_

Tide's breathing had become erratic and bordered on outright hyperventilating, they took a deep breath in and exhaled slowly and shakily.

_You know what, nah. We’re done here! That’s enough thinking, actually. I don’t want to think about the scary lady with the even-scarier arm._ Tide huffed with a scowl, staring at the sweater in their lap. _It’s a start. I don’t need to figure everything out right this second._

Hopping down from the counter and pulling the hoodie over their body, they glanced back at their reflection before leaving the restroom.

Tide stopped briefly at the cafeteria to pick up a few bottles of water and a few readily-available sandwiches. They were feeling pretty hungry since they had eaten an early lunch with Lace, and figured it might not be a bad idea to grab a couple for the others too. 

Cap’n was there as well, sitting at a large, round table and chatting with a bunch of old people that Tide only vaguely recognized— _what is it with old people and how much they all talk to each other?_ — and they waved at him before making their way back to the room Sybil was in. 

Hearing a few more mutters and hushed voices as they walked, Tide pulled the hood of their jacket over their head, feeling insecure and nervous and _cod,_ they weren’t even sure what they were talking about or if they were even talking about their face at all.

Tide felt more at ease once they had returned to Sybil’s hospital room, though. The door was closed now so the doctor had likely left by now, and Tide knocked quietly, hands and arms still carrying sandwiches and _extremely_ cold water bottles, the cold feeling only mitigated slightly by their now-damp jacket sleeves.

The door opened slowly, Lace standing there as Tide stepped through, hastily dumping the things on one of the chairs. They lowered the hoodie off of their head and rolled up their sleeves, rubbing their arms in an attempt to warm them back up.

“Brought water. And sandwiches.” Tide heard shuffling and turned to see Sybil staring right at them.

“What kind of sandwiches?” The inkling asked.

_Oh, wait. Oh my god Sybil hasn’t eaten since like breakfast has she?_ Tide glanced toward the clock in the room that read _6:24pm. Okay, yeah, this girl definitely needs some food._

“I just kinda grabbed whatever. I think they’re all different kinds.” They picked up the sandwiches and presented them to Sybil. “You get first pick, Syb.”

“Is it okay for her to be eating those?” Lace asked. Tide looked over her shoulder and saw the other octoling standing behind her, eyebrows furrowed.

“Why not?” Tide asked, drawing the other sandwiches away once Sybil had picked one out. “S’not like she needs to be food free. And honestly, if she’s on some kind of pain killers, probably best to have food in her stomach anyway.” Tide presented the two remaining wrapped sandwiches to Lace, who looked between them and back at Sybil.

“If you’re sure…” Lace said, gaze lingering on the inkling for a moment longer before she picked a sandwich.

“It’ll be fine,” Tide assured, shoving her own food in her hoodie’s pocket. “If she couldn’t have food, the doctor would have said so. But really, from how it sounds, Sybil probably won’t be here much longer, so they probably weren’t as concerned as getting food up here for her to eat compared to patients who stay for a few days or overnight or something.”

“Can we eat a bit more once we go back home?” Sybil asked. 

_Home._ Hearing Sybil call their apartment that made them smile. As Tide turned to face her, they noticed she struggled to open up the plastic, and they took it from her hands. 

“Uh, duh, of course,” they said, the wrapped food now incorporated into their hand motions. “I’ll make you mac and cheese or something. My dad has a good recipe I can make, if we don’t get home too late.” Tide extended a claw and dragged it along the surface of the plastic, splitting the thin material open.

“Mac and cheese sounds… _really_ good right now,” Sybil replied slowly. Tide handed the sandwich back to the inkling who took it carefully. “And thanks. I wish I had cool claws. Seems pretty convenient.”

Tide laughed and sat in the chair next to Lace. “Yeah, I guess it is.” Swinging their legs back and forth, they unwrapped their own food, content to forget their insecurities for a little while while eating with their friends.

* * *

Making her way straight to her bedroom, Sybil let herself rest on the couch, resting the crutch against the wall. It was nice to be back at the apartment again. Despite only staying there for less than a week, it was starting to feel homely and familiar. Sybil thought that was a comforting thing to be able to feel about everything, all things considered.

Picking up her phone, Sybil opened the chatroom app and scrolled back into the conversation, deciding she could spend some time catching up on the messages she missed yesterday and pick up where she left off.

Cars2 > don’t worry about it.  
10,008 > Hey.  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Hi Eight!  
MC.Princess > Yooooo there’s our big star whaddup Eight  
DJ_Hyperfresh > There, now you have a fun color too!  
■Webmaster■ > 10,008 has changed their username to Vampunder  
MC.Princess > What… what is that? ?  
DJ_Hyperfresh > The chat color? I just gave her the color her tentacles look sometimes when she starts tests  
DJ_Hyperfresh > It’s kind of like a maroon color, right? I think it would be considered maroon  
CraigCuttlefish > i think that is maroon yes  
DJ_Hyperfresh > I mean, if Eight wants me to change it, I always could, of course ^-^  
MC.Princess > Nah nah nah I mean the username!  
Vampunder > to quote 9, don’t worry about it  
MC.Princess > okay okay now you two are just messing with me. explain your weird usernames  
Cars2 > no♥  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Sorry Pearlie, looks like you’re just gonna have to use your imagination  
MC.Princess > That’s not helping!!  
MC.Princess > right now my imagination says “this one is 2 cars, and this one is if a vampire were from inkstralia”  
Cars2 > if that makes you feel better, sure! you can go with that  
MC.Princess > I WANT TO KNOW  
Cars2 > die then  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Well, time to get to work! Have a good day, agents  
MC.Princess > I will decipher your weird games, you two. Don’t think I won’t!  
MC.Princess > in the meantime, can’t have the phone blowin’ up on air! Peace  
■Webmaster■ > DJ_Hyperfresh has left the chatroom.  
■Webmaster■ > MC.Princess has left the chatroom.  
Cars2 > have a good time at work!  
Cars2 > oh they already left. wow that was fast  
Cars2 > anyway we should get to testing too. bye old man if you’re here!  
CraigCuttlefish > have a good day agents good luck and be careful

Sybil chuckled as she read the chat, amused by everyone’s antics as they all talked amongst each other.

Cars2 > YESSSS WE GOT A THANG  
Cars2 > LOOK LOOK LOOK  
Cars2 >  
  
Cars2 > i wonder where sybil is? i’m so excited i really wanna tell her we’re getting closer to getting out of here  
Vampunder > yeah, I wonder where she’s been all day…  
Cars2 > oh yeah, i wonder why You’re wondering where sybil is  
Vampunder > ?  
Vampunder > you said it first  
Cars2 >i wonder why You’re wondering where sybil is when i was wondering about wondering where… uh.  
Cars2 > wait  
Cars2 > now i’m confused.  
Cars2 > what were we talking about?  
Vampunder > we were talking about the big hunk of metal we have to deal with now.  
Cars2 > okay, no, we weren’t, but i’ll go ahead and just take that because you made me talk myself in a circle and now i want to talk about the thang anyway.  
Cars2 > it’s so… big? i’m not super sure what we’re supposed to do with it  
Vampunder > i think we need to take it back to the central platform  
CraigCuttlefish > congratulations you two  
■Webmaster■ > MC.Princess has entered the chatroom.  
Cars2 > Pearl look!!  
MC.Princess > oh snappppp  
■Webmaster■ > DJ_Hyperfresh has entered the chatroom.  
Cars2 > hey for the record, after everything that happened today, can we drop the agent names?

Sybil frowned, realizing why the sudden change in topic occurred.

Cars2 > i’m gonna drop the numbers because it’s hard to remember  
Cars2 > especially in very tense my-friend-is-bleeding-out situations. sorry cap  
Cars2 > like call us that if you want as a nickname thing i don’t really care myself but uhhhhhh we know your names so  
CraigCuttlefish > that is fair you three already know each other’s names and the other two are basically agents at this point so if you want to be a little more lenient about it you can  
Cars2 > i’m Tide. i won’t introduce the others without permission, but you can call me Tide  
MC.Princess > Tide? like high tide low tide?  
Cars2 > i mean i guess?  
Vampunder > my name is lace.  
MC.Princess > Oh whoa wait both of your names kinda rhyme with your numbers  
MC.Princess > Lace and Eight, Tide and Nine… that’s fun  
  
The chat seemed to end there, and Sybil minimized the app. She let the phone rest against her chest, staring up at the ceiling and casting a few glances around the room. Despite the lingering feelings of guilt, she felt much calmer than she would have ever expected herself to feel after having spent the day in a hospital, numb with painkillers while her leg was elevated in a cast.

_Probably helps that I’m nowhere near the surface._

The door to the room opens slowly, and Sybil lowers her head to see Lace entering slowly, dressed in loose, casual clothes and tentacles still a bit wet from her shower. She carried her box of mem cakes in one hand and a towel over her shoulder in the other, and she walked over to sit next to Sybil on the room’s couch.

“Hello,” Lace said quietly. She looked over Sybil, her eyes lingering over her cast before making eye contact with her again.

“Hi,” Sybil said. As she looked into Lace’s eyes she felt a bit nervous and averted her gaze, staring at the floor. “Um, sorry for everything, Lace. You two were so excited today after getting the Thang, and then, well…”

“Sybil…” Lace shifted in her place next to her, and Sybil looked up to see a worried expression clear on her face. “This isn’t your fault. No more apologies, alright?”

“But—”

“Shhh, nope.” Lace poked Sybil’s cheek gently. “No more for the rest of the day. Okay?”

A pause. “Fine,” Sybil said with a pout. Lace chuckled at this and shuffled to sit a little closer, their knees bumping together.

“I’m not mad at you, okay? No one is. I’m mostly just glad you’re alright. Relatively, anyway. I imagine it would have been way worse if the leg actually came off.” Sybil winced at Lace’s words and the octoling noticed, eyebrows furrowing with concern. 

“Just…” Lace sighed and reached for one of Sybil’s hands, taking it in her own. “Just be careful, okay? You’re not attached to any respawn system up there like we are.”

“Yeah, I know. S—” Sybil almost apologized but stopped herself. “Yeah.”

It was silent for a few minutes, and Lace gave Sybil’s hands a squeeze before letting them go. She opened her box of mem cakes and began re-organizing some of the little objects inside before closing the box shut with a quiet squeak of the hinges.

“Another thing. You should take the bed.” Lace said abruptly and matter-of-factly, ending the silence between them. Sybil blinked, looking back up toward the octoling sitting by her side. Her head tilted to the side as she met Lace’s gaze, looking over the inkling with an expression she couldn’t quite place.

“Huh? Why?” Sybil asked.

“Well, first off, rest is important for you right now, and I _know_ you’re not the heaviest sleeper and I can’t imagine sleeping on a small couch is helping much there. Secondly,” she continued, counting with her fingers as she talked, “even if you slept fine there, I’ve also seen _how_ you sleep on that couch. You shuffle sometimes, and sometimes that shuffling ends up with you curling into a little ball, probably because the couch isn’t that big. See reason one. Thirst of all, you got hurt really badly. I think I can deal with sleeping on the couch while you’re recovering.”

Sybil couldn’t help the soft chuckle that escaped her throat. “Thirst of all?” she repeated, a small smile on her face.

“Yeah, like, the thirst reason that… wait, am I saying it wrong?”

“I think you’re mistaking it for ‘first of all.’ It’s first, second, third, and so on.”

“Oh. Huh.” Lace was silent for a moment. “Well, word usage aside, I still think you should take the bed.”

The inkling sighed. “I mean, I get it, but…” Sybil’s hands wrung together in her lap as she leaned back. “I don’t wanna kick you out of the bed, either? You’re _taller_ than me, so for you to say that the couch is small for me, then…” Her voice trailed off, fingers tapping her legs anxiously.

“If it’s that big of a problem we could, just… share?”

_What._ Sybil felt like her brain could have just stopped working as soon as the words left Lace’s mouth. Honestly, she wasn’t entirely sure it _hadn’t_ stopped. For months now Sybil had daydreamed and sighed wistfully at just the _idea_ of getting to cuddle with Lace, and now the octoling was offering to share a bed when she still hadn’t remembered her?

“It’s a pretty big bed, I’m sure we’d both fit fine,” Lace added, hand rubbing at the back of her neck.

“I mean, you’re not wrong, just…” Sybil felt frustration with herself and the whole situation rising, and she grabbed the fabric of her shorts as her hands balled into fists. _I have a huge crush on you and I don’t want to get too close to you when you probably see everything as platonic._

Lace waited for Sybil to continue, but the inkling remained silent. The octoling sighed and tapped the ground with her foot lightly. “We don’t have to share the bed if you don’t want to. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, or anything like that. But I don’t want you to sleep on the couch, either. Your leg _needs_ to heal, and sleeping in odd positions could make your leg heal the wrong way or make it take longer to heal or worse.”

Sybil was silent as she considered what Lace had said; the octoling was right and she knew it. They both did. Admitting it was difficult though, and Sybil didn’t want to make Lace’s sleeping arrangements uncomfortable either. It was true that the bed was large enough to reasonably hold both of them, so maybe it wouldn’t be too bad.

“Okay, sure. We can… we can share the bed.”

A knock stopped any further conversation and the door opened slowly, Tide looking into the room.

_“Whooooo’s ready for mac and cheeeeese?”_ Tide spoke in a sing-songy tone, smiling and looking very proud of themself. “Also made some burgers, so it’s kind of just a late dinner.” The smell of food aired through the room now that the door had been opened, and Sybil remembered just how hungry she was, the ham and cheese sandwich from earlier only staving off her hunger for a little while. The smell was also enough to break Sybil out of her funky mood, her troubles being near-forgotten in place of hunger making itself known. 

Who knows, maybe eating could be enough to make her feel better?

“Cod, yes pea-please.” The inkling said, reaching for the crutches she had been given. Lace stood nearby as Sybil slowly rose to stand up with a practiced motion, avoiding putting any pressure on her left leg. The octoling standing by her had relaxed once Sybil had risen to a stand, but she felt a hand gently rest on her back and she tried to contain the nervous smile that threatened to crawl onto her face.

Today had been quite the day, and yet everything had already begun to feel so normal once again.

* * *

Opening her eyes slowly, Sybil groaned softly and rubbed at her face. Reaching for her phone, she checked the time, 2:37 am, and realized it’d probably be a good idea to take the prescribed painkillers before letting herself go back to sleep.

Then she realized she couldn’t move— something was holding her. She almost panicked, but when the realization dawned on her, Sybil’s breath hitched and for a moment she almost thought her hearts had stopped.

Lace was curled up next to her, breathing softly, her head rested on Sybil’s left shoulder. One of her arms laid across Sybil’s stomach as her hand loosely held onto her side. The octoling’s tentacles curled slowly, and one of them had even loosely wrapped around one of Sybil’s own green tentacles.

Okay, so maybe she _was_ still panicking, just in a completely different-and-gay kind of way.

Sybil immediately felt overwhelmed with all the thoughts going through her head. _Is this a dream? I’m dreaming, right? I have to be dreaming because Lace is cuddling me and there’s no way this is real and it’s clearly a trick my poor lesbian brain is playing on me._

Unsure of what to do, Sybil shifted her left arm to get a little more comfortable and stared up at the ceiling, her face feeling incredibly warm.

Turning her head to her right and toward the nightstand, she saw the small bottle of pain medicine that was set amongst the other bottles. Moving her right arm slowly and carefully, she reached for the bottle and picked it up, bringing it close to her face and turning it in the darkness to make sure it was the right one. It was admittedly a bit difficult to tell at first without her contacts to help her see, and the darkness of the room wasn’t doing her any favors either.

It was the correct bottle though, and she placed a pill in her mouth, recoiling at the bitter taste as she tried to grab the nearby cup of water as quickly as she could without disturbing the octoling at her side. She craned her neck forward and swallowed the pill, sticking out her tongue as she placed the now-empty cup back on the top of the nightstand.

_Why do so many kinds of medicine have to be so bitter? Eugh._

Glancing over at Lace again, who was thankfully left undisturbed by the movements, Sybil smiled softly. She leaned back into her pillow and relaxed her neck, turning a bit to face the octoling. She reached over and brushed her cheek gently, before realizing what she was doing and withdrawing her hand as if she had been burned.

_I shouldn’t…_ she thought sadly. Sybil wondered if it would be best to detach herself from the Lace’s grip altogether, but if she woke the octoling up in the process, there was a strong chance things would be _very_ awkward. So for the time being she stayed still, hands drawn close to herself as she remained as still and quiet as she could.

She felt frustration and a sense of helplessness creeping over her again, her throat closing up as tears built up at the edges of her eyes. _Why now, of all times? Why does this have to happen now? She doesn’t remember me, or our friendship, or…_

Sighing, she blinked away the silent tears and reached for her phone, hoping for some form of distraction. She noticed a notification she hadn’t before, and she squinted as she opened the chatroom app, a notification from Marina waiting for her.

DJ_Hyperfresh > Hey Three, Pearlie and I have been mostly quiet because we didn’t want to bother you and the others if you were trying to rest or something, but we’ve also been pretty worried, so I just wanted to check in and make sure you were okay? ＞︿＜  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Whatever happened sounds pretty serious, so I guess it might not be exactly okay or anything, but still… don’t forget we are here for you however we can be!

Sybil smiled softly at the messages. Had she gotten them when she was asleep? She considered replying in the morning, but began tapping a message as best as she could manage with one hand, hoping that Marina could wake up in the morning without worrying over her.

Squibble > I’m skright, it wadnt exactly an inkury you can throw a bsndaid on snd call a day, but yhe doctor saud it should heap withour complivstion as long as I take care of iy  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Ah! I’m glad to hear it’ll heal up just fine!

The reply was almost instant. _Was Marina still awake at this hour?_ Another set of messages came through before Sybil had the chance to ask.

DJ_Hyperfresh > Yooooo what’s up Three!  
DJ_Hyperfresh > It’s ya girl, MC Pearl, back at you LIVE with phone stealing revenge  
DJ_Hyperfresh > also hey I’m glad you’re gonna be okay! we were like super worried aboutcha  
DJ_Hyperfresh > go catch those z’s tho!!! it’s like SUPER late  
Squibble > I could say the same to joth of you  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Bwahahaha “joth” makes me think like jean goth  
DJ_Hyperfresh > anyway night night sleep tight don’t let the ink bugs bite  
DJ_Hyperfresh > Goodnight Three! （＾∀＾●）ﾉｼ

Sybil began to type out another message, _you can call me Sybil,_ but she hesitated, and instead she put her phone into sleep mode with a sigh. Talking to Marina and Pearl _did_ help her feel a bit better though, even if only to take her mind off things for a while. It was nice to know people cared enough about her to check in with her, though she felt a bit guilty that they had been kept up with worry over her. 

She’d have to be more careful if the metro was just prone to collapsing like it had earlier today. Or… yesterday? The deeper into the facility she went, the more of a mess things seemed to be, and Lace was right: she _wasn’t_ attached to a respawn system. 

Well, she wouldn’t be able to go back for a while, so that was something she could consider when it wasn’t so late at night… or early in the morning. Lace seemed to like bringing a backpack with her for testing, maybe she ought to start doing the same. Maybe she could bring basic travel snacks or bottled water—

Lace shifted slightly in her sleep, mumbling something Sybil didn’t understand— speaking in Octarian, maybe? Or maybe it was just typical sleepy talk— and pulled Sybil closer to her. The inkling couldn’t help the soft yelp that escaped her, and she quickly covered her mouth with one of her hands. The tentacle that had wrapped around one of her own curled and grazed by her face lightly as it swayed, and Sybil carefully moved the hand from her mouth to touch her own cheek. She patted it slightly, a smile spreading across her face.

She took a deep breath and sighed slowly, steadying herself and her emotions. So maybe this was super awkward and she was feeling nervous about it, especially since the octoling clinging to her was still asleep. For now, Sybil decided it would be best to be as calm as possible and let herself go back to sleep. Maybe she’d even forget the whole thing. There was still a complete possibility that she was dreaming the whole thing up, and she’d wake up drooling into a pillow or something.

Sybil couldn’t do much to move between the octoling curled into her side and the cast wrapped around her leg, but she carefully and slowly moved a hand to hold the back of Lace’s neck, slowly rubbing her thumb along the skin.

_Well, if this_ is _a dream, it’s a very nice one. I can get used to dreaming of this._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, a huge thank you to my lovely beta readers and friends. Feel free to let me know what you think! See you all next time! 🐙


	9. Fragile Hearts; Shattered Trust

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! So a few things of note:  
> First of all, phew! What a hiatus, huh? Sorry it took so long! What I said last chapter about NaNoWriMo was no joke, but I think it really payed off, because counting this chapter, I got a whopping 5 chapters written in the span of like four weeks. Wow!  
> Second, I've been considering hosting Metro Tones elsewhere. For now it will remain here on AO3, though. I haven't made a final decision, and even if I had, it'd probably take a long time to come into practice! Don't worry, if and when I make a decision about it, I will make sure to leave a note about it. I don't wanna leave anyone in the dark!
> 
> Anyway, onto the actual story stuff. This one's a bit of a doozy, but it's pretty important! I hope you enjoy!  
> Thank you as always to my lovely beta readers and friends who hype me up and inspire me to write about my agents! ヾ(•ω•`)o

Lace and Tide walked along the dark streets of the city, neon lights buzzing faintly overhead as electricity pulsed and flickered through them. One of these days Lace wanted to make a note of the patterns and what they meant — she figured they must mean something, given the way Tide talked about them — but testing had kept her busy. Her own memories had as well, especially once she had begun to remember more complicated things.

Those complicated memories were exactly why Lace had chosen to join Tide in paying Iso Padre a visit.

The two of them were headed to the isopod's home for the afternoon, and Tide seemed overjoyed. Lace glanced over at them. The octoling walked with a bounce in their step, full of energy as usual. Tide had mentioned earlier that it wasn’t often they would go to visit the isopod because he generally preferred to visit Tide instead.

Lace followed Tide as they took a sudden turn through a nearby alleyway, the darkness even thicker there than in the main streets of the city.

“You know where we’re going, right?” Lace asked, stepping over a sea slug on the ground as she trailed behind Tide.

“Uh,  _ yeah.  _ Who’s the metro-denizen again? I’ve only been to my uncle’s house like, a thousand times or something. We’re not far now.”

Lace hummed absently, following after them. “It’s just kinda dark in these alleys, they aren't lit as well as the rest of the city, so…”

“It’s just a shortcut, Lace. We’re fine. Also, again: I’ve  _ kinda _ lived here my whole life. My eyes are used to it. Just stay close and use your CQ-80 to make light if you need it.”

Tide took another turn and Lace followed after. Her hands rested on the CQ-80 tucked in her pocket, considering what Tide had suggested. The two entered a relatively bright area once again though, and she withdrew her hand and let it rest at her side.

Lace followed as Tide walked up a flight of metal stairs. It creaked and groaned under their shoes, loud  _ thuds _ sounding with every step. She tried not to think about how the stairs weren’t enclosed at all and it would theoretically be  _ very easy _ to fall off of them, and instead focused on Tide ahead of them, who easily cleared two steps at a time with long steps and jumps.

_ At least these stairs seem to be very sturdy…  _ Lace thought warily as she watched Tide.

They arrived at the third floor much quicker than Lace did. They waited at the top for her, and when she caught up they pushed her shoulder playfully. “Jeez. Took you long enough. You kept looking down at your feet and at the ground, I’d almost think you were afraid of heights.”

Lace fidgeted, unsure of how to respond to a joke like that when they were completely right. Tide looked at her with a confused expression before their eyes widened. “Oh. So that’s why during all the— ah.” They shoved their hands in the pockets of their shorts. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to—”

“It’s fine,” Lace responded, her voice sounding a little uneven. She cleared her throat and shrugged. “It’s not like I ever told you. I guess that’s the sort of thing that would have been good to share since we do those tests together.”

“Yeah. I mean…  _ maybe _ , but whatever, y’know? I’m not that worried about it. We’re doing fine. We’re almost finished with Line B. That’s a lot of progress!”

Lace adjusted the bag over her shoulders, suddenly very conscious of the box of mem cakes that sat inside. “Yeah, it is. I guess.”

“Don’t be modest,  _ Agent Eight.” _ Tide started to walk again, moving away from the flight of stairs. “We’ve been making a lot of progress! I know we took a break after what happened with Sybil a bit ago, but then we cleared six stations right after! That’s some good progress, fear of heights or not.”

Lace rolled her eyes. “Yeah yeah, alright,  _ Agent Nine.” _

Tide stopped in front of a door, turning to stick their tongue out at Lace before knocking on the door with a practiced beat. It was noticeably larger than most other apartment doors Lace had seen nearby. It opened to reveal Iso Padre and he stood patiently in the doorway, looking down at the two. Lace began to wonder how Tide’s dad ever managed to get through the much smaller door of the apartment they all shared with Tide, given that it used to be his home as well.

Lace stood still as Tide bounced forward and wrapped their arms around the older isopod, standing on their toes to make themself as tall as they could. Iso Padre’s many arms wrapped and curled around them to return the hug.

“Hello, young Tidal. It’s so nice to see you, as always.” Iso Padre lifted his head toward Lace, his whiskers moving slowly. “And to you as well, young Lace.”

“Hey.” Lace lifted a hand in a small greeting motion before lowering it and resting it in her pocket.

“The young inkling isn’t with you both today?” He asked.

“Not today,” Tide said, backing away from their hug. “Sybil’s still recovering and she was feeling tired anyway, so she decided to stay back at the apartment instead of walking across the city.”

“Ah, that’s right. My memory has always been a bit unreliable. I hope she recovers quickly.”

_ Yeah, me too, _ Lace thought to herself.

“Well, don’t be shy. Come on in, young ones.” Iso Padre stepped to the side and welcomed them in. Tide strolled through the entrance, but Lace walked in with a slower pace, taking time to look around at the home's interior.

While she didn't have any idea what to expect when walking in, it had a surprising sort of aesthetic. The home was filled and adorned with a lot of furniture and trinkets that seemed fairly old, and it smelled like something was baking in the oven of the kitchen. A table in the corner held a variety of plants. Though she couldn’t identify them specifically, there were books and gloves and a few different water containers placed neatly by the plants.

_ He must really like gardening,  _ Lace thought. It somehow made complete sense for the isopod, she supposed.  _ Cozy and welcoming. _

She left her shoes by the front door — sneakers set neatly next to Tide’s casual sandals — and placed her bag on top of them, propping it up to lean against the wall.

“Are you making a pie?” Tide asked, sitting down on one of the couches in front of the television.

“A triple berry pie, yes. It’s not often I have guests over anymore these days, so I thought it would be a nice treat,” Iso replied, closing the door behind the two of them and slowly strolling back into the kitchen of the apartment. “Make yourselves at home, squires.”

Lace wasn’t sure where to go, so she followed Tide, sitting next to them on the worn-looking couch. The isopod could tell her to  _ make herself at home _ all he wanted, but this was an unfamiliar place and she had no idea what was and wasn’t allowed, so she’d stick around Tide for the time being.

Tide was leaning forward, reaching for some of the fruits on the coffee table in front of the two of them and placing them into a small glass bowl that rested nearby. “Have you ever had strawberries, Lace?” they asked, popping one of the thin slices into their mouth.

Lace rolled her eyes. "I've had strawberries before."

"Apples?"

"Yes, I've also had apples. Not the hugest fan. Too mushy and weird."

Tide chuckled. “Maybe you just got a  _ bad apple?” _ they said while nudging Lace in the side. 

Lace pushed them. “Ha ha,” she replied sarcastically.

Tide plucked another fruit off of the plate, holding the orb-shaped thing in between two fingers. "Grapes?"

Lace scoffed. "Just because I was raised in the domes doesn't mean I've missed out on all this food or whatever. We did  _ have _ fruits there, believe it or not." She paused, followed by a sigh. "But no, I have not had grapes before."

"Oh my god,  _ really?  _ You've  _ gotta _ try them! You like sweet stuff, you're bound to love them."

_ Fruits, sweet? _ Of all of the fruits she had tried in the domes, she didn't think "sweet" was an accurate descriptor for most of them. But she hadn't tried grapes before, and if Tide said they were sweet…

They were looking up at her expectantly. Lace sighed. "Sure, I'll give them a try."

Tide beamed, their teeth flashing in a wide smile. They looked over the platter of foods, their pointed fingers hovering over the small fruits.

"Uhh… what are you doing?" Lace asked, watching as Tide scanned over the fruits with immense concentration.

"Trying to find the perfect little grapelets."

_ Grapelets…?  _ Lace chuckled. "Why, aren't they all the same?"

"I mean, more or less, sure." Tide picked up a grape and looked it over with a scrutinizing gaze. "But if it’s your first time trying them I wanna make sure you get only the perfect ones." 

Lace raised an eyebrow but shrugged, leaving Tide to carefully inspect the grapes before dropping them into a small dish one by one. Unsure of how long it would take them, Lace retrieved her CQ-80 and messaged Sybil.

Vampunder: It’s really weird that I'm able to just remember certain things now   
Vampunder: Didn't realize until now, but Tide asked me if I've tried certain fruits and I just… knew   
Vampunder: like, obviously none of my mem cakes covered "has eaten apples" but Tide asked and I just… Answered   
Vampunder: some details are still hazy, but i think i’m actually getting somewhere   
Squibble: Thats great! I'm happy for you   
Vampunder: also I hope I didn’t wake you up or anything. I know you wanted to rest   
Squibble: nope. I am still very much awake. sbvdncms   
Squibble: i was messaging marina a bit since she checked in on me   
Squibble: but also I found a copy of Pokemon Battle Revolution so i’ve just been sitting in the living room playing it. hope Tide doesn’t mind bcs i don’t think it’s ever been started   
Vampunder: what do you do in it?   
Squibble: it looks like it’s just a 3d pokemon battling game, really   
Squibble: if only I still had my copy of pokemon pearl, it looks like you can connect them?    
Vampunder: Aw, well I hope you have fun anyway   
Vampunder: Don’t forget to take your pain medicine on time though? Also make sure you eat something so you don’t take it on an empty stomach.   
Squibble: You sound a lot like Marina    
Squibble: I’ll be fine, don’t worry about me (。・∀・)ノ

"Whoooo ya textiiiin'?" Tide's voice caught Lace off guard and she practically threw her CQ-80, fumbling with it before catching it between her arm and stomach. They were leaning in close, practically laying over her shoulder to peek at her screen. It seemed like an excessive motion to Lace, especially given how wide the screen of the CQ-80 was.

Actually, considering that thought, Lace was almost  _ positive  _ that Tide knew the answer already.

"Sybil." She answered slowly, looking at Tide apprehensively.

"Ohhhh, so your  _ girlfriend."  _ Tide nodded slowly with their hand on their chin, as if they were confirming the conclusion that they had come to themself.

"She is— she is  _ not _ my girlfriend." Lace placed her arms firmly on her legs, squeezing them slightly. She felt her tentacles twitch,  _ ugh, _ and avoided Tide's gaze.

"Uh huh,  _ suuuure," _ Tide teased. "You know, your tentacles don't move very much, but when Sybil's involved they sure do get all curly and twisty at the end."

Lace suddenly noticed a  _ very interesting wall _ and opted to turn her focus there _ , _ studying over each individual bump and ridge rather than acknowledging Tide and their taunting.

_ They  _ are  _ right, though. _

Lace thought of how she had woken up this morning, clinging to Sybil under the covers they shared, tentacles wrapped up together. This morning was probably the fourth day or so since they had begun sharing the bed, and each morning ended up just the same: with Lace quietly and carefully pulling herself away from Sybil.

She had initially suggested they share the bed because Sybil was hurt, but now Lace was worried that Sybil would think she was just  _ weird  _ or something. Lace was  _ also  _ worried about accidentally hurting her leg, too. 

_ That’s way more important actually, what is  _ up  _ with me? _

Sybil seemed fine though, if not a little easy to disturb in her sleep. When Lace sat up this morning Sybil turned over onto her side, and Lace’s hearts leapt at the thought of it. She hadn’t woken up, but her arm splayed out into the now-empty space and curled up under the covers, and Lace wondered what it would be like to be held like that herself.

But that thought was  _ embarrassing  _ and  _ weird _ and Lace felt weird for thinking about it. Who thinks about their friends that way?

" _ Ooohhh _ your tentacles are doing it again! You  _ do _ like her!"

“Ugh, you’re so—” Lace stopped herself, realizing what she was about to say.

_ The way they act with me… it's familiar, _ she thought.

Tide just chuckled in response, but stopped when Lace scowled at them. “Alright, alright, sorry. Don’t look so sour. Here’s your grapes, hand-picked by yours truly.”

Tide presented the green and purple grapes to Lace in a small bowl, which she took carefully. She looked the unfamiliar food over, unsure what to expect, before popping one into her mouth and biting into it.“Hmm. It’s good. A bit tart I think, but good.” Tide nodded thoughtfully at her words, as if they were considering her input very carefully.

“Oh, you ate a green one," Tide said. "You might like the purple ones more.”

“Is there a difference?” Lace asked.

“Um, who’s the grape master here? Because last I heard, you haven’t had the pleasure of eating any until today.  _ Yes,  _ there’s a difference.” Tide took one of the purple grapes from the bowl and started shoving it toward Lace’s mouth. “Now eat the dang purple grape!”

“Let me eat them myself, you weirdo.” Lace pushed Tide away but they pushed back in retaliation, sticking their tongue out at her.

It didn't take long before the two were pushing and kicking at each other on the couch, grapes spilling over Lace’s shirt and onto the floor.

“Come on, you two. That’s enough.” Iso Padre separated the two of them, lifting them into the air. Taken off-guard by his appearance and not expecting the isopod to be so strong with how slim his arms and claws were, Lace simply dangled there in confusion. Tide, unfazed, stuck their tongue out at her again before promptly being shaken a little by their uncle.  _ “Tidal,”  _ he said, and their expression changed to a coy smile.

“Alright, alright. I’m done. Sorry, Uncle Iso.”

The giant isopod carefully set them both back on the couch and returned to the kitchen. They looked at each other and started to laugh, Tide pushing Lace’s arm as they did. Lace looked at them and her laughter died down, her smile faltering as the similarities became painfully obvious again.

_ Tide acts the same way Chip did with me. _

* * *

Squibble: You sound a lot like Marina    
Squibble: I’ll be fine, don’t worry about me (。・∀・)ノ   
Vampunder: bkjhjh;;;;;;;; b

Sybil looked at that last message with a bit of confusion, but she guessed Lace might have dropped the CQ-80 and fumbled with the controls.

_ It’s sweet how she worries about me, _ Sybil thought, leaning into the back of the couch.  _ Thinking of Lace and Marina reminds me, though… _ Sybil unlocked her phone and looked at her chat with Marina again.

In the past, Lace had sometimes talked to her about a friend named Marina — among others that she had known back in the domes — and Sybil wasn’t sure how to broach the topic with either of them, especially if it ended up being an odd coincidence.

With Lace, she was worried it would put unnecessary stress on her about not being able to remember yet  _ another _ person. There were multiple people Sybil could have mentioned to Lace; various names or nicknames she’d heard over their time together from stories or moments she had spent reminiscing. Sybil wasn’t actually sure just how important those people were to her though, and she worried about the idea of putting it onto Lace to try and remember them, especially if it turned out she hadn’t known them that well or even just never remembered them and was always left guessing about who they were.

Sybil already felt a little guilty about doing that to Lace in regards to herself, but at least she was actively there with her to try and fill in the blanks and everything. She wasn’t a name without a face to Lace.

Despite her feelings of guilt, Lace didn’t seem to show any frustration or stress over it, and Sybil didn’t pry. 

_ She is pretty good at hiding her feelings sometimes, _ Sybil thought, drumming her fingers on the couch’s arm rest.  _ But I’ll put some faith in her and hope she isn’t hiding those feelings just for the sake of me or Tide. _

Otherwise, asking Lace about people she only  _ might _ have known was one of those things Sybil considered out of the question when it came to Lace’s amnesia. If Lace ended up remembering someone important, she would share whenever she was ready.  _ Probably, maybe. I hope so. _

Sybil sighed.

Either way, Sybil had made it clear on multiple occasions that she would be there to support Lace however she could, and Tide had done the same, so she hoped that Lace would know that she didn’t have to be alone in handling her memories and anything that might have come up with them.

When it came to Marina, though… Well, Sybil had already been considering talking to her about it for a long time, but she wasn’t sure how to broach a topic like that with her either. What would she say? _ ‘Hey Marina, been meaning to ask, did you come from the Octarian domes? Just wondering, because you recognized me and that’s not something that happens ever?’ _

… Though, it  _ had  _ happened again fairly recently with Chihiro. The mental tally she kept for “number of people who had recognized me as Agent Three” was now at three people.  _ Ironic. _

Maybe it  _ wouldn’t  _ be so bad to just ask, though. Communication is key, and Sybil couldn’t think of any alternative explanation for being recognized. She opened her phone, deciding to just go for it.

Squibble: Hey, sorry if this is a weird question, but it’s something I’ve been meaning to ask   
Squibble: Did you used to be in the octarian domes?   
Squibble: It’s cool if you don’t wanna answer and sorry if that ends up being way off base or something !   
Squibble: but it’s been on my mind for a while. most people don’t know about about my involvement with octarians and octavio   
Squibble: and by most people. I really just mean that anyone other than agents 1 and 2 and the captain and i guess agent 8 don’t know about it?

She stared at her phone for a bit longer before placing it on the couch, figuring a response might take a little while. Marina was very busy usually, despite all the time she spent helping out or even just chatting. Pearl too, really— both of them always had a job to get to or a track to record or edit at odd hours of the day.

_ One and Two were like that too, though, _ she thought.

“Being an idol sounds hard,” Sybil mused aloud to herself. “I wonder if Pearl and Marina are similar? They  _ are _ musicians.”

Sybil gave another anxious glance at her phone. She was by no means expecting Marina to drop everything to answer such an out of the blue question within moments, but the more the time passed, the more she felt unsure of herself for sending messages like that.

Deciding to ignore the feelings for now, she slowly stood up with help from her crutches and made her way to the kitchen, phone held in her hands before dropping it on the counter. Sybil opened the freezer and looked over the food inside before deciding on pizza rolls. 

_Easy and tasty and I don’t have to cook them, so it’s kinda perfect,_ Sybil thought as she grasped the cold bag. She closed the freezer door and made her way to the oven on the opposite side of the kitchen. As she turned it on to pre-heat, her phone vibrated loudly against the counter surface. She picked it up, opening the unread message from Marina.

DJ_Hyperfresh: Yes, I did. I was one of the elite soldiers   
Squibble: Ah   
DJ_Hyperfresh: I got to the surface a couple years ago, more or less. After your fight with DJ Octavio, I left everything behind to see what was beyond the domes for myself. I ended up on Mt. Nantai, I met Pearl, got into the whole music thing… you get it.   
Squibble: I see…

The oven beeped and Sybil pulled out a tray and grabbed the bag of pizza rolls from the freezer, opening it and shaking a few out onto the tray. She placed the tray into the oven and started the timer before returning the bag to the pantry—  _ pantry? _ Sybil paused abruptly as she realized where she was putting the bag and moved to put it in the  _ freezer, _ the  _ correct _ place for frozen foods.

A stray ice cube fell from the freezer as she did, toppling onto the floor. She knelt down slowly, moving in such a way to avoid putting any pressure on her left leg, and carefully scooped up the ice cube, dropping it into a potted plant on the counter.

“Off the tile, into the soil,” she said to herself, a small smile on her face. Sybil brushed her hands against her pants to wipe off the cold water that had melted onto her palms before picking her phone up from the counter.

DJ_Hyperfresh: Sorry if I freaked you out with the whole, “oh my gosh is it really you agent three??” thing, I might have just gotten a bit excited at the time!! (；′⌒`)   
Squibble: Huh? No, you’re fine   
Squibble: Sorry, I’m making pizza rolls so my hands were a bit full   
DJ_Hyperfresh: Good! You need to eat!   
Squibble: I knoooow   
Squibble: but I was just wondering because   
Squibble: Eight, um,   
Squibble: well   
Squibble: Lace, I mean, I think I saw that she told you her name,   
DJ_Hyperfresh: ?   
Squibble: she used to talk about someone named Marina a lot from before she left the domes, anddd I was wondering if you’re the same Marina?

Sybil pocketed her phone while she waited for a response. She made her way to the laundry room through the other bathroom of the house.

DJ_Hyperfresh: So the two of them did get out… that’s such a relief!   
Squibble: Huh?   
DJ_Hyperfresh: Yes, I am the same Marina.   
DJ_Hyperfresh: Unless you happen to have met another octoling who knew of a second Marina, but I think that would be quite the coincidence!   
Squibble: Um…   
DJ_Hyperfresh: I thought Lace looked familiar, and her voice sounded close to an old friend of mine.    
DJ_Hyperfresh: The three of us were all at the fight between you and DJ Octavio, featuring the Squid Sisters   
DJ_Hyperfresh: It changed our lives, Three. And I don’t think it would be an exaggeration it changed a lot of others’, too    
DJ_Hyperfresh: We all decided we wanted to see the surface for ourselves. I went first, and I always wondered if the two of them made it out okay. It’s such a relief to hear they did!   
Squibble: Marina, hold on   
Squibble: I’m only talking about Lace   
Squibble: who is the third person you keep mentioning?   
DJ_Hyperfresh: …   
DJ_Hyperfresh: We called her Chip. Did she not leave the domes with Lace?

“Oh,” Sybil said out loud. She tapped her foot on the ground, the sound echoing slightly on the tiled ground. Of all the names Lace had mentioned, Chip was one of the least frequent. Even back then Sybil hadn't asked much about her, because it seemed like a touchy topic from what little Lace had shared. 

_ Did something happen? _

Squibble: Lace talked about her like.. a little, but no. I mean, I don’t think so. It didn’t sound like it.   
DJ_Hyperfresh: Oh no…

Sybil wasn’t sure what to say. She almost felt bad for bringing it up at all, but it  _ did _ answer a few questions. Lace was there at the concert and Marina was there with her. That would be why both of them knew who she was when she became acquainted with them.

DJ_Hyperfresh: Well, if Lace got out and I didn’t know it, I’m sure there’s a chance Chip ended up escaping herself   
DJ_Hyperfresh: She’s smart, like, *really* smart, and good with technology, I’m sure she could find a way   
Squibble: I think I can see why you two were friends. Smart and nerdy   
DJ_Hyperfresh: Ha! I can’t even be mad at that because you’re right. o(*￣▽￣*)ブ   
DJ_Hyperfresh: Anyway, sorry for all that.   
DJ_Hyperfresh: So Agent Eight- er, Lace… is the same person as my friend back in the domes…   
Squibble: Seems like it. Though I’d maybe not mention it to her for now? She’s got a lot on her mind with trying to get her memories back as it is, I think   
DJ_Hyperfresh: Yes, that is…probably for the best, if she doesn’t remember me, and especially considering Chip…

Before Sybil could reply, the sound of a door slamming shut caused her to yelp, startling her into dropping her phone on the dryer.

“Uh,” she turned toward the bathroom door, which was now notably shut rather than open.  _ No big deal, _ she thought,  _ Tide said sometimes the air pressure causes it to shut. _

She picked up her second crutch and walked over to the door, adjusting her arm to grasp the doorknob. When the handle didn’t budge she gripped it with a bit more force, but it still wouldn’t move. Entering her swim form to go under it wasn’t an option either, as that was one of the many “don'ts” of her recovery.

Sybil turned to look back at the utilities room. There  _ was _ another door in there, but it was blocked on the other side by boxes of old things, and Sybil didn’t think she’d be able to push past it. She also had a feeling that doing so would result in either getting herself hurt or being scolded over potentially hurting herself. Or both.

“How long were they going to be gone again?” she asked out loud, hearing the shake in her own voice. Being stuck back here was already a bit stressful, but the smell of the pizza rolls baking in the kitchen only amplified the tension of the situation. Feeling a bit frantic, Sybil messaged Tide.

* * *

“Oh shit,” Tide said, looking at their phone. Lace glanced over at them from her spot at the counter — Iso Padre had called her over to taste test the mixture of berries for the pie — to see they had the CQ-80 open to a chat window.

“Language, young Tidal,” Iso Padre scolded. “What’s the matter?”

“Sybil is stuck,” they said, rising to their feet as they minimized the screen. “I need to go get her. And there’s food in the oven and I’d like for our apartment to  _ not  _ burn down.”

“What—” Lace turned in her seat, starting to stand up as well. She wasn’t sure if Tide was exaggerating with the apartment building burning down, but Sybil being stuck wasn’t good, especially with her injury, and her head started to fill with worry over her.

“Lace, you should probably stay here,” they said, shuffling toward the front door in their socks and slipping into their sandals. “No offence, but you’re kinda slow — compared to me, at least — and I don’t need you getting lost in the city if I floor it over to my place to help your not-girlfriend.”

“She’s—” Lace paused for a moment and blinked, processing everything they had said. “She’s not my girlfriend.”

“What I said!” They called as they left, dashing through the large door hastily closing behind them as they exited the apartment.

A feeling of awkwardness settled over Lace, and she drummed her fingers along the surface of the counter. She  _ had _ wanted to speak to Iso Padre, and Tide’s leaving was  _ convenient, _ sure… It also meant that Lace was left alone with her friend's family member who she didn’t know very well, though. 

And now she was worried about Sybil, too. Lace sat back down on the stool with a huff. She swayed from side to side in the seat, legs swinging a little as she fidgeted, unsure of what to do with herself.

“Sorry about her, squire.” Lace looked up at the voice of Iso Padre, quiet and even as always. “Tidal means well. Even if she can be a little overbearing or energetic.”

Lace huffed a bit, hand raised to hold her forehead. “Tell me about it.”

“I could, if you like.” He said with a chuckle and twitching whiskers. “She looks up to you a lot, though. I can tell.”

“Hmm.” Lace couldn't see his eyes, but it looked as though his attention had returned to the counter, washing away flour with a washcloth. She looked down at her hands as she drummed at the counter again, making a beat with her tapping. 

Lace thought back to the mem cakes and sighed, knowing that the longer she waited to ask him about it, the less time she had alone to do so until Tide returned. Especially if they were planning to make it a quick trip.

_ And for Sybil’s sake, I hope it is. _

Pushing away her anxieties for now, she decided to bite the bullet. “Can I ask for… I dunno, advice, I guess?”

“Advice for what, young squire?” He responded, a soft tone to his voice.

“You know about, um…” Lace waved a hand in the air as she tried to collect her thoughts and figure out what she wanted to say, “I don’t know, just…  _ stuff  _ about the mem cakes, right?”

“That is correct, I do know…  _ stuff. _ What do you wish to know?”

Lace hesitated, unsure of how to approach the topic at hand and trying to think about how to phrase what she wanted to ask. Iso Padre was patient. He washed dishes with his many arms while Lace sat at the counter in front of him, swaying slightly in the stool briefly before stopping herself so Iso Padre wouldn't see her fidgeting.

“I guess it’s not that I need to  _ know  _ something, exactly.” She paused again, scratching the back of her ear. “I just… remembered something kinda rough. And I’m not sure how to deal with it.” 

He didn’t say anything or acknowledge Lace’s words at first, and she considered repeating what she'd said, but decided against it, not wanting to come off as rude or impolite. Instead she waited as he washed a few more dishes, placing them on a small rack and putting the blue towel back where it belonged.

“I’m sorry to hear that, young one. What would you like my advice on?”

Lace shuffled again, kicking her feet underneath her as she sat. “I’m not really sure, actually.” She wasn’t even sure  _ what  _ she wanted out of the conversation, she just didn’t want to bother either Sybil  _ or _ Tide about it. Not yet, anyway. It could wait until she knew how to process what she remembered a little easier. Iso Padre seemed to know a fair amount about mem cakes, and he had also participated in tests previously, even if he had never finished his own testing. 

“You just seem like you know a lot,” Lace said with a shrug, “and I remembered what you said when we first met. The whole… ‘being vulnerable and sharing them’ thing. So I thought it made sense to ask you about it.”

“Did you bring any of your mem cakes with you, young octoling?” He asked.

Lace nodded. “The box is in the bag I brought with me, the one I left with my shoes.”

“Why don’t you go get it for me?”

She nodded again, hopping down from the stool she sat on to get her box of mem cakes. When Lace returned she placed the box atop the counter, choosing to remain standing for now.

“I want you to pick a smaller memory, if you have one,” Iso Padre said.

“A smaller memory?” Lace asked. 

Iso Padre nodded. “One that doesn’t affect you as much as others might, for example.”

Lace looked over her mem cakes, pushing them around before pulling out the fish-shaped mem cake.

“Alright, now cup it in your hands like a bowl,” he instructed. 

When Lace did so, he placed a claw over her hands and Lace felt their surroundings changing around them. She blinked and looked around. It was the same memory of her in the domes, but… 

She was back in the domes, her younger self carrying a box of Sardinium on orders from an elite. Lace watched as she huffed and shifted the box in her arms.

“Why is it… I dunno, different?” she asked, peering around. “Why aren’t we in the apartment? And why can I see myself?”

“We are still there, young one. Sometimes sharing memories with others is a good way to get a little added perspective.” Iso Padre spoke with soft words, speech slightly hard to make out through everything. “It is no different with mem cakes. Letting people hear you and understand what you’re going through, you can learn a lot more than you might have before.”

“That feels a bit…  _ literal  _ here,” Lace said, waving her hands around in a circular motion.

Iso Padre chuckled. “Maybe a bit. It’s just how these things work.”

It didn’t make sense to her, but when did anything in the Deepsea make sense?

«Stupid elites,» her young self muttered, mouth partially blocked by the box. «If only I could swipe one of these, I bet Chihiro would die to have even just one of these things…»

Lace watched as her young self walked and faded out of sight, and the short memory fell and ended around them, their surroundings returning the apartment. She sighed, holding the mem cake in her hands. Lace hadn’t realized it when she had first gotten the mem cake, but even this memory had a trace of Chip in it.

Lace carefully placed the fish-shaped mem cake back down in the box and her eyes lingered over it and the mess of mem cakes inside. It occurred to her that she was starting to get a lot of them.  _ Maybe I should look into some way to divide or sort these, _ she thought, pushing them around carefully until she saw the now-familiar blue of her newest mem cake. She released a shaky breath she’d been holding without realizing and carefully plucked it out from the pile of cakes it resided in.

“Here,” she said, holding it carefully in her hands. “It’s this one. It didn’t even come from a test, it just… happened.” That was the most distressing part to her. 

_ Was all that testing for nothing? Were there memories she’d only get from tests, or even ones she’d never remember? _

Iso Padre reached with one of his claws to touch the mem cake, but he paused. “Are you sure you wish to open up about this, young one?”

Lace hesitated. “No, not really. But I think I might need to. Even if it hurts.”

Iso Padre nodded wordlessly and held her hand, the mem cake settled in between their palms. Lace’s eyes shut for a moment, but she opened them to find herself in the Octarian domes once more.

Laughter caught her attention and she turned toward the sound. Two octolings ran together, between piles of scrap metal and various mechanical parts. They ducked between crates and shushed each other far too loudly to be effective, trying their best to contain their giggling. 

A much-older octoling stomped through the area, her tentacles lashing and kelp being flicked around with the movement. It was only now that Lace realized that she hadn’t been  _ that  _ tall at all; though she supposed that it seemed different now that she was seeing it from an outside perspective.

«You shitty little brats,» she mumbled, form hunched and shoulders squared, «if I get my hands on you I’ll make sure you never get your humanoid forms, you slimy little  _ catfish _ .»

The patchy yellow and blue octoling who sat next to Lace’s younger self looked around quickly, picking up a big rock that was lying nearby. She drew a hand close to her mouth in a  _ shhh _ motion and tossed the rock as far as her little arms could manage. It hit its mark and landed against a sheet of metal propped up against a wall, even managing to topple over a rod that rolled loudly along the ground.

Lace watched as the older octoling’s head whipped around toward the sound and grinned. «There you are, you little insubordinate  _ worms. _ I’ll make sure you’re taught a thing or two.» The older elite broke off into a sprint, leaving the two alone. They both peeked over the crate, wide eyes checking to make sure they were in the clear before looking at each other and bursting into laughter. After a moment they settled down, staring up at the fake, LED sky.

«We’re not actually going to get in trouble, are we?» Lace watched her past self glance around the crate again, eyes wide with concern. She was still fairly young back then, her body still inky maroon from top to bottom, and her hands still stubby and rounded.

«Pfft, no. Well… I don’t think so. She can threaten us all she wants, but she isn’t our caretaker, Akane.»

_ My name was Akane. _

«Anyway, what did you do to make her so mad, Chihiro?»

«I broke her radio on accident,» the older octoling said. Young-Lace gave her an incredulous look. «Okay, okay. I pulled it apart! I wanted to see what would happen if I took out the sound chip inside of it. It was the breaking it part that was an accident.» 

The other octoling was young too, though closer to getting her humanoid form; her hands were just starting to form something resembling fingers, and individual tentacles had begun growing from her head.

«Areen’t you supposed to be a good influence or something? You’ve just barely got fingers and you’re already using them and getting into trouble.» Young-Lace shook her head. «And you better be careful with how you keep stealing those, or that’s gonna be your new nickname,  _ Chip.» _

_ Her name was Chihiro, but we called her Chip. _

_ Chip. Chip. Chip. _

_ I don’t want to forget again. _

Chip laughed, all the yellow fading from her ink. «You know, I think I’d take that. That sounds fitting, I think.» She stood up, stretching her hands into the air before tagging the young Lace.

«You’re so meeean,» young-Lace said with a pout. Chip gave her a shove and then sprung to her feet, dashing off.

«Last one back is a rotten squid,» Chip called behind her, taking off and leaving Lace in the dust.

«Hey, that’s no fair!» Lace shouted back as she scrambled after the octoling running ahead of her. «Ugh, you big cheater with your stupid better legs!»

Their surroundings changed.

Lace found herself standing in the crowds of what appeared to be a concert. It was busy and crowded, and most of the faces were impossible to make out, including one of the octolings by her side - but Chip stood there with her, the two of them smiling wide as they watched the battle below them. She couldn’t really make out the details of what was transpiring, but given what she had been told, she knew what it was even if she couldn’t see it clearly in the slightest.

The battle between DJ Octavio and Agent Three.

_ Sybil is down there. She’s in so many of these memories and I still can’t see her at all. _

The memories shifted around her again.

She blinked and found herself standing in a dark room, illuminated only by an alarm light flashing red. Lace exhaled slowly, preparing herself for this part with her hands balling into tight fists.

Chip and Lace were running, breathing heavily as they ducked behind a wall. A twintacle rolled through the nearby hallway, and the two narrowly avoided being spotted. 

Lace gripped her shirt tightly, feeling that same, familiar panic rising quickly in her chest.

«What do we do? ██████ said this was the way to go,» young-Lace asked. Chip was silent, her tentacles fully yellow as they twisted and curled. «Chip?»

She looked back down at Lace, fear and worry clear on her face. She closed her eyes and exhaled a shaky breath. «I’m sorry, Sushi. I—»

«Sorry? What are you s—»

Even standing as a bystander to one of her own memories, everything that happened next was a blur.

Chip twisted young-Lace’s arm behind her back, causing her to shout in pain. This alerted a nearby patrol, and the sound of heavy footsteps rumbled through the hallways. She could only observe as her younger self elbowed Chip in the side with her free arm. The guards entered the room and shouted for them to stop. Chip had managed a fairly strong punch to Lace’s jaw, and even her current self recoiled at the sharp feeling of pain that soared through her face.

Lace's younger self stumbled back. She rubbed at her jaw and steadied her stance, staring at Chip with wide, fearful eyes. «Chip…?»

Chip stared back at her wordlessly, tentacles coiled and poised as if ready to strike, blue rings flashing brightly. The guards in the room didn't move, stunned into stillness as they watched the fight that transpired in front of them.

When Chip charged forward, young-Lace was ready. She ducked down and kicked Chip’s legs out from under her, and the attacking octoling stumbled and crashed into the floor, momentum carrying her several feet across the tiles. Chip coughed and sputtered, a heavy wheeze coming from her throat as she groaned.

Lace released a breath she had been holding at the same time as her past self. Young-Lace was visibly panicked, her breathing erratic, tears welling as she stared at her sister with wide eyes. The guards shouted again, finally snapping out of whatever daze they had been in, and she scrambled to her feet. Without a word, she took off down the hall as the guards rushed to Chip's side.

The environment swirled and shifted around them as young-Lace ran, navigating the route as fast as her legs could carry her, not daring to look back for a second.

_ Don’t look back, don’t turn around, just keep running, fuck— just keep going, keep going— _

The ominous red lights and metal corridors turned to darkness; then a muddy, rusted brown color; and finally...

A literal light at the end of the tunnel appeared. Even from her outside perspective, Lace could still feel the soreness building in her legs and her lungs as her younger self pushed onward, driven only by the promise of escape in the distance. She was only a few precious yards from the light when her legs finally gave up and, mustering the last of her energy, she threw herself forward, changing into her swim form to slip through the worn metal grate in front of her.

She tumbled far downward into a canyon, falling onto solid earth in her octopus form as she came to a halt on flat ground. After a moment the young Lace shifted back into her octoling form, breathing heavily, carefully sitting up as she stared at the sky.

It was so bright and blue and  _ real _ . A few clouds lined the sky above, drifting slowly along. She never knew the sky could have so many  _ colors. _ A breeze bustled past her, and she watched as nearby trees rustled and the tall grass and flowers swayed with the wind.

The surface was just as beautiful as she had always hoped and dreamed it might be.

And she was completely and utterly  _ alone. _

Lace approached herself slowly, moving cautiously as if the projection of her own memories might actually notice her if she weren’t careful. She sat down in the grass beside young-Lace, unable to do anything but stare as the girl sobbed and shook where she sat.

«You weren’t supposed to leave me all alone.» She choked out. «We were supposed to get out together. Why would you leave me to do this alone? Why did y-you try to  _ hurt  _ me?»

Despite knowing she could do nothing but watch, Lace reached out toward her younger self as the same tears rolled down her cheek. Her hand moved straight through the memory, and she sighed.  _ Of course. _ She drew her legs up to her chest as she sat next to her own painful memories, feeling a dull ache in her chest that pulled at her hearts.

The memory stopped there, colors blurring and fading and melting around them until they were back in Iso Padre's home. Lace hugged herself tightly, stepping away from the giant isopod standing beside her.

“Oh, young one…” Iso Padre started. 

“She was my sister.” Her voice was quiet, and she sounded pathetic, but she couldn’t bring herself to have enough energy to care at the moment. “My  _ sister. _ What happened to her? How could she have done that to me? Did something happen? Maybe if I had been more careful, maybe they found out somehow and brainwashed her again, or—”

“I know it’s easy to blame oneself in times like these. I understand the feeling.” She didn’t hear him approach, but a claw came to rest on her shoulder, giving it a firm squeeze. “But this is not your fault.”

Lace shook her head and covered her mouth, trying not to let herself cry.  _ Crying is useless, it doesn’t change anything, it won’t fix  _ anything.

She looked away as Iso Padre stepped in front of her, brushing her long tentacle out of her face and wiping the stray tears from her eyes. “It’s okay, young Lace. Let it out if you must. It is always okay to cry.”

Hearing her name caught her off guard, and the reassurances that flowed easily and calmly from the isopod sent her over the edge. It was as if he had read her mind and responded in turn with the exact thing she never knew she needed to hear.

Letting out a choked sound as she swallowed, she shut her eyes tight, her tentacle curling tightly around the claw that had just brushed it aside. Lace cried out and she felt herself being pulled into a hug, several arms pulling her in and holding her carefully as her body heaved and shuddered with sobs. Iso Padre spoke softly, offering more gentle reassurances as Lace's tentacles curled and twisted rapidly.

And despite everything, despite all that she went through and the pain of it all… Lace was upset, sad, confused, angry, she felt a large amount of resentment with Chip and the whole ordeal.

Despite it all, she didn’t hate Chip. She didn’t think she did, at least.

She just wished things had been  _ different. _ It hurt going through it once and it didn’t hurt any less to remember it and effectively re-experience it as if it were the first time.

Lace had no idea how long they stayed there like that, Tide’s uncle holding her while she cried, and she thought of how pathetic she must have seemed like that. Eventually her embarrassment over the whole thing outweighed her other feelings, and she backed away from the hug, avoiding eye contact as she sat back down on the couch.

“Thanks. Sorry.” 

“Nothing to apologize for, young Lace. Crying is good, sometimes,” he said, walking back toward the kitchen. “Stress manifests differently for everyone. It might not feel good in the moment, but sometimes the simple act of letting it out helps, somewhat.”

Lace sniffled, hands folded over themselves in her lap. She wasn’t really sure if she felt any better, but at least she didn’t feel like she had to hide it anymore.

The silence between the two of them let Lace hear the sounds from the kitchen. The sounds of running water and silverware clinking against glass were the only things she could bring herself to focus on.

Iso Padre strolled back into the living room and he placed a glass of tea in front of her.

“I do not know if you like tea — or if you do, how you like it — but it will hopefully help soothe you.”

Lace stared at the cup for a moment before grasping the handle, bringing it to her mouth to take a drink. One cup of tea wouldn’t fix her problems, but she appreciated the gesture, and that was a start.

* * *

“As always, you and your friends are welcome over anytime, little woodlouse.”

“Wow, it’s been a long time since I’ve heard that one.” Tide said, voice slightly muffled as they hugged Iso Padre.

“And young Lace,” he said, stepping back from Tide turning to face the other octoling. “If you wish to learn more about mem cakes for yourself, you could try going to the city’s library. You are always welcome to come to me, of course, but in case there’s anything you’d like to learn about them, or anything else, for yourself, the option is there.”

_ Oh, right. I hadn’t even considered trying to look for resources like that on my own. _ “That’s actually a pretty good idea. I will… definitely keep that in mind, thank you.”

“It’s always a pleasure.” Iso Padre stepped forward and wrapped her in a big hug of her own. She wasn’t sure how to react to the gesture, so she raised her arms and tried to hug him back as best as she could, hoping it wasn’t too awkward or weird.

They both waved back to Iso Padre outside of his door until it came to a quiet close in front of them, and the two headed for the stairs.

If Tide had noticed how Lace looked when they had returned, they hadn’t commented on it. Sybil was okay — save for being sad over some burnt pizza rolls — which was a relief. Lace sighed, thinking it might not be a bad idea to talk to Sybil or Tide about some of her feelings on what she had remembered. Iso Padre had been a huge help, but she wasn’t particularly close with him, and it might be nice to confide with someone she was closer to.

She looked over at Tide, their arms swinging as they walked, the long sleeves of the shirt they wore loosely swaying with the movements.

“Hey, so… I’m sorry about when I shouted at you a few days ago.” Lace said.

“Huh? When?” Tide asked, looking back up at her.

“Um, back on the train. When we were getting Sybil back to the hospital.”

“Oh, psh, don’t worry about it.” Tide hopped up onto a nearby brick wall, balancing themself as they walked next to Lace, arms extended above her. “It was a bad moment to be distracted.”

“Still… I shouldn’t have shouted at you. Sorry.” Lace mumbled, looking down at the pavement as they walked.

“S’all good. Seriously, ‘’m not worried about it.” Tide hopped down from the wall and ducked into the same alley they had walked through previously, and Lace sighed.

Lace wondered what Tide’s dad might think about her when they found him on the surface. Assuming Tide would bring Lace along to meet him, of course. Would he approve of Tide’s makeshift family of sorts? Tide’s uncle seemed to like her well enough, so maybe their dad would as well.

It almost scared Lace to admit it after everything she had just remembered, but Tide was starting to seem more and more like a sister to her. They looked out for each other, but they also bickered and fought with one another; Lace cared about Tide a lot, and she figured they cared about her too.

Maybe that was a good thing. She certainly hoped so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So how about that huh :]c Feel free to let me know what you thought!  
> I posted the chapter art for this one ahead of time on Twitter [here](https://twitter.com/skygummi/status/1338281480884260865) if you'd like to see it and the timelapse I added in the thread! 
> 
> As always, I hope you enjoyed! See you next timee o/


	10. Unease

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! Been a while, huh? I meant to have this posted a lot sooner and then drawing obligations got in the way. Happens!
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy! :]c

Chip walked through the halls, leaving ink marks along the wall as she wandered. She had no particular destination in mind or goal for the day; she mostly wanted to get away from Kettle, even if only just for a little while. There were some thoughts on her mind that she wanted to try and work out.

Kettle had told Chip that their target — Akane Takowase — was her sister. She’d also shared that Akane had _attacked_ Chip before escaping the domes. She said it so _casually_ , as if it was nothing more than an unimportant afterthought, a detail that had no bearing on the current situation.

_I guess she still doesn’t know about the whole amnesia thing, though. It makes sense that she’d say it as if I already knew, but…_

It bothered her. _A lot._ More than she wanted to let it bother her. At the time Chip had just silently nodded at Kettle’s rambling and ranting, but how was she supposed to be able to process something like that when she couldn’t even remember it? She was already unsure about the mission at hand, and she had been for a few weeks now.

This new information should have made things easier. That _would_ make the mission easier, wouldn’t it? To accept the betrayal her brain hid away from her, out of reach in a part of her mind that she couldn’t get to — wouldn’t this mission be easier if she could feel or at least believe in that feeling and the information that Kettle had relayed to her?

Maybe that’s why she took the mission to begin with. Did she want revenge, or some form of payback? That didn’t sound like her. Or she hoped that wasn’t who she was, at least. Chip wasn’t sure if it was due to her amnesia or _what,_ but she just couldn’t bring herself to feel like she had been wronged in the first place, let alone feel the need to get back at someone who was apparently very important to her that she couldn’t even _remember._

_My sister…_

She held the top of her head as she walked, tentacles curling around her hands. _This is all so confusing and I_ don’t _like it. I don’t like not remembering something so important._

A few more minutes were spent like that — footsteps echoing on old, dirty tile — until Chip came across a door she hadn’t seen before. The sound of creaking metal echoed into the distance as she opened it to reveal another hallway, the lights on the ceiling flickering as their bulbs struggled not to fizzle out. She could faintly hear the sound of voices, and she walked forward as silently as she could, tentacles raised cautiously.

She poked her head slowly around the corner and saw a group of octolings standing by what looked like a very old phone.

The octoling standing next to it was the first one she took notice of. She was the only one Chip could see the front of, and she had a large object hoisted over her shoulder, held in place by an… arm? It looked like it was _meant_ to be an arm at least, but formed out of a swirling mass of bright ink.

The other two octolings stood together in front of the ink-armed one. One of them was visibly nervous judging by their body language, shoulders tense as they held their own arms. The taller one looked a lot more relaxed in comparison— she stood with a hand on her hip and her other arm around the shoulders of the octoling beside her.

Chip felt a sense of dread as she realized the last of the trio looked fairly close to the picture she and Kettle had been provided with, ignoring that her tentacles were a different color and length now. That wasn’t uncommon, of course— tentacles did _grow,_ and the stark black tentacles in the photo they had been provided with were likely just the required elite color.

“ _I know she’s your sister or whatever, but she attacked you. She’s a traitor. We will find her and when we do, don’t hold anything back. Got it?”_

Kettle’s words _alone_ were enough to make her hold back though, hesitance planting her feet firmly onto the ground. _Is that what this mission is for? To get an octoling soldier who turned out to be a traitor?_ Chip wasn’t sure if that was right; octolings who escaped the domes weren’t exactly small in number, and sending Octarians out to go get them back every time didn’t seem reasonable.

If it were Kettle here, Chip had no doubt in her mind that the reckless girl would run in without a moment to spare toward such thoughts. Chip remained still as she stared at the octolings though, unsure of what she would even be able to accomplish if she _did_ rush right in.

The group exchanged some words, but she couldn’t understand what they were saying at all. _I really need to try to learn Inklish,_ she thought to herself.

Her thoughts drifted to the inkling girl she had befriended about a month ago. Three was a bit of a strange one, and she still wasn’t sure what to think of the agent, but she seemed nice and sometimes just as nervous as Chip was herself. She almost seemed to vanish after that though, and Chip had begun to fear for the worst when she had discovered a pile of rubble stained with dried blood only days later.

She just hoped Three was okay, wherever she was.

The sound of footsteps drawing closer broke Chip out of her thoughts. The two octolings who had stood together a moment before were nowhere to be seen, and the inky-armed one carrying the large object was walking right toward the hallway Chip was hiding in. She backed away and glanced around quickly for a place to hide, impulsively ducking behind a small pile of crates around the corner.

She waited quietly, not wanting to be caught. Chip nervously glanced around and began weighing her admittedly very _limited_ options in case of any trouble, but she kept herself in the shadows, trying to remain as still as possible. If it came down to it, she could always strike with her tentacles and flee, but she’d rather avoid doing that if she could help it.

The footsteps grew closer and Chip held her breath, watching intently. As she adjusted her crouching position, her foot slipped on a nearby rod, causing it to roll loudly in the otherwise silent corridor. Chip froze and covered her mouth, her heartbeats audible in her ears as the sound of metal echoed all around her.

The ink-armed octoling simply strolled by as if she hadn’t noticed the sound at all.

Chip got a better look at her as she walked by; the sclera of her eyes were completely black and her mask was the same to match. There was a small blue orb that Chip assumed was her pupil, pointed forward as she walked. It looked as though something was in her ear — maybe a noise-cancelling earpiece of sorts? — which may have been the reason she hadn’t reacted to the loud sound of metal clattering and rolling on the floor.

The woman opened the door with her free hand and walked inside, going back through the halls Chip had been in earlier. Chip shot a cursory glance back down the hallway to make sure no one else had followed before slowly slipping through the door herself and following not far behind. 

Perhaps curiosity had simply won her over, but Chip wanted to know if the strange object she held was important. Or, maybe she’d be led to some sort of secret employees-only area. A lab, maybe? The woman in front of her _did_ wear a very cliche looking coat with that same familiar logo on the back, and Chip doubted it was simply casual wear.

She followed carefully and stealthily at first, but eventually let her guard down and started following right behind the woman like a shadow. Whatever she was listening to must have been really loud — that or she was just a generally unobservant person? — because she seemed to pay no mind to Chip’s presence at all.

After following her for a few minutes, the woman came to a stop in front of a large, metal door with an unreadable label, the text worn and unlike anything she had ever seen before. The octoling reached into her coat pocket with her free hand and retrieved an odd blue device, holding it up to a panel next to the door. The red light swapped to a light green as an audible _click_ sounded, and Chip watched as the door rose up from the ground and into its frame, settling into place with a _thud._

The woman walked inside with the large object in hand, but Chip decided to stay outside herself. _No way am I risking going in there and getting stuck with no way out. Maybe if I had one of those blue things too…?_

The inside looked like a store-room, and a fairly spacious one at that. Chip could see what appeared to be four pedestals, three of which had orb-like fields of light, swirling and pulsing brightly as other strange objects floated inside. The woman walked up to the one empty pedestal and placed the object down, grunting hoarsely as it made contact with the ground. _Wait, is that thing heavy…? Just how strong is she?_

Looking a bit closer, the object she had been carrying looked like it was only blades attached to a piece of plastic. Another one of the objects looked like the base to some sort of machinery, lined with shining buttons and lights, with a long extension cord unravelling from the back of it. The next looked like a clear container, several notches marked on its surface and a handle protruding from the side. The last looked like a simple disc; a lid, maybe?

… _Wait._ Were those meant to be pieces of a blender? _Just what is going on here…?_

The recently-returned object — the strange blade thing — floated up into the air. Soon enough that same bright, spherical field surrounded it just as it had been with all the others. The woman punched some buttons on a nearby keypad, though Chip wasn’t close enough to see what she had put in. She then backed away and began to walk out of the room with even strides. As she exited the door began to close behind her, and Chip shot another glance inside of the room as the lights inside dimmed, wondering what the purpose of those items were.

A pained sound caught her off guard and Chip yelped, tentacles flicking defensively as she turned toward the source of the noise.

The octoling woman was standing next to her, grasping at her arm as it dripped ink all over the floor at a more rapid pace than it had before. It seemed to shift and curl, twisting in ways an arm definitely _shouldn’t_ until it formed into what appeared to be a solid _tentacle,_ much to Chip’s horror. She was stunned and remained frozen in place, staring at the blue tentacle-arm as it twisted and lashed about violently.

The scary-ink-tentacle-arm lady gritted her teeth and Chip watched as her shoulders rose and fell, before the woman shot a sharp glance back at her and Chip jumped at the motion alone. It was the first time she had actually been acknowledged — or seen the woman express any emotion at all, for that matter — and it took her off-guard to see the previously unresponsive octoling like this.

She looked like she wanted to speak and opened her mouth for a moment, but all that came out was a choked and strangled sound. It made Chip feel really _awful;_ surely she should do something to help, right? Something was wrong and this woman was _clearly_ in an agonizing amount of pain.

Chip lifted a hand toward her but hesitated, unsure of how or _if_ she could even help the woman hunched in front of her. Before she could think on it any further, the woman in front of her straightened out, her tentacles becoming unresponsive as her arm returned to its normal, gooey state. Well, maybe _normal_ wasn’t quite the correct word to use, but it at least seemed not to actively hurt for her.

In any case, whatever had just happened was over as fast as it had started.

The strange woman continued on her way, walking evenly and calmly toward wherever her next destination was as if nothing had happened moments ago. Chip spent a few more minutes following after the woman — until something stopped Chip right in her tracks. On the wall beside her was a familiar mark of green ink, somewhat faded and trailing around a corner.

_Agent Three?_

She spared a glance to make sure the strange woman hadn’t taken notice and saw only the back of her labcoat as she descended further into the halls.Chip smiled a bit sadly before turning in the direction of the green trail. _So she IS okay…!_

Following the marks for a while, eventually she found herself looking at the back of Agent Three. She practically beamed, and she could feel how her long tentacles swayed and curled as she smiled, excitedly bouncing in her boots and clapping her hands together.

«Three!»

* * *

It had been a while since Sybil last saw Chihiro. Sure, a lot of that had to do with the fact that she was barely allowed to walk around the apartment she was living in, let alone go playing in what was essentially a bunch of messy debris, but still, she wondered on occasion how the octoling was doing. Though it definitely caught her off guard to hear her codename called as loudly as it had been within the echoing walls of the tunnels, it was a welcome surprise to see her suddenly, skipping toward Sybil with long, joyful strides.

Sybil had brought a couple drinks with her this time — something she had decided on after her leg incident — and she was happy to share with Chihiro as the two chatted amongst one another, sharing stories of things that happened in the few weeks or just stories in general. She felt incredibly bad to discover that Chihiro had believed something happened to her after their last meeting, though the octoling assured her that she was mostly just glad to know Sybil was okay.

As the two talked, Sybil was grateful that she had made a point to ask Lace about the Octarian language during the times she was stuck in bed and bored, and it was relatively easy to keep up with when she practiced and paid attention. It wasn’t hard when Lace always got a really focused and concentrated look to her that Sybil found endearing.

Remembering Lace made Sybil’s face flush, and she shrunk into her coat a little bit, the large collar easily covering the lower-half of her face. In all the time she had spent recovering, the two of them had still been sharing the bed. The awkwardness of the whole situation seemed to melt away into a strange normalcy at some point — Sybil wasn’t sure when, exactly — but it still made her a little nervous.

«Are you okay?» Chihiro asked, seeming to take notice. «You look a little, um… blue.»

Sybil wasn’t sure if Chihiro was commenting on her blush or using an expression, but she shrugged it off. «I’m fine.»

Chihiro quirked an eyebrow at Sybil. _There’s no way she believes that._ «You can tell me if you like, Three.»

«Mhh…» Sybil hummed to herself, debating on whether or not she should share. On one hand, Chihiro _was_ someone she had only met twice now, and she should _probably_ not go around talking about her crush to anyone who so much as asked. On the other hand… Sybil didn’t really have anyone else to talk about it with, and Chihiro seemed genuine and nice enough. She was also a bit older than her, so maybe she’d even have some advice?

Of course, Sybil wasn’t really sure what kind of advice she’d be looking for; her situation with Lace was odd and extremely specific. It wasn’t like Sybil would be asking, “Hey, how do I talk to girls?” or, “So how do I actually _know_ if she’s into girls or not?” or anything. There was no good way to get advice on “so the girl I like lost all of her memories of me but I still like her a lot, what do I do?”

…Actually, that “how do I know if she’s into girls” thing _was_ a strong contender for advice Sybil would like to get. Despite her over-analyzing everything else, she was starting to realize she didn’t actually know if Lace liked girls.

She sighed and pulled her collar down, not wanting her already-shaky Octarian to be muffled and even harder to understand. «It’s not serious or bad. So, there’s this girl…»

« _Ohhh,_ I see,» Chihiro said with a smirk. Sybil fidgeted with her ring, feeling embarrassed at the tone of Chihiro’s comment. The girl beside her laughed. «Sorry, sorry. I just think it’s cute. So there’s a girl?»

Sybil nodded, still feeling a little nervous. «Yes, there’s a girl who I have a crush on—»

Chihiro gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. «You want to _crush_ her?» she asked, interrupting again.

“Wha—” Sybil threw her hands up in front of her, waving them quickly. «No! Nothing like that, I mean, um— like,» Sybil shook her hands a little as she tried to explain, «I think she’s, um, pretty? And nice? I don’t know how to say it in Octarian—»

Chihiro laughed again, a small chuckle as she put a hand on Sybil’s shoulder, giving it a squeeze Sybil found comforting. «It is okay Three, I was joking. I know what a crush is.»

«Wh— that’s mean!» Sybil said with a fake pout. «Mean to me!»

«Sorry, sorry.» She apologized while she continued to laugh, short and bubbly laughter that Sybil couldn’t help but find contagious as she found herself laughing along too. Once their laughter had died down, Chihiro gestured toward Sybil, prompting her to continue.

«Anyways, so. The girl I like,» Sybil said, pausing as she tried to figure out where to begin.

«The girl you like?» Chihiro repeated, eyebrows raised with curiosity.

«I dunno. It’s kinda…» Sybil waved her hand, unsure of what word to use. She looked at Chihiro, hoping she’d understand.

«Complicated?» She asked.

«Yes! Complicated,» Sybil said with a nod. «We have been good friends for months now, almost a year, but… she doesn’t remember me.»

«Oh?»

«So… we used to be, um…» Sybil lifted her hands and began to motion with them again, making a flat horizon with one hand and using the other to direct motion from under the hand to above it. «Outside? Up?» Chihiro nodded at Sybil’s words, so she continued. «Then one day, we were here. She lost her memories and doesn’t remember me. She _has_ remembered a lot, but not… not me.»

«Oh no. I am sorry, Three,» Chihiro said.

Sybil shrugged. «It’s no one’s fault. It’s just… _difficult,_ because I still like her, and I’ve been trying to forget. But then that feels not fair, since she forgot everything.»

«I think I understand. Maybe. I lost a lot of my memories too.»

«You did?» Sybil looked up at Chihiro, who nodded.

«Yes. I don’t remember much. I remember you, a little… I remember being in the domes, but the rest is—» Chihiro used a word that Sybil didn’t understand, but she nodded, understanding the general idea. «You said she is remembering?»

«Yeah. More every day. Even some hard things. Just not me.»

«I hope she remembers soon.» Chihiro took a drink from the can of juice Sybil had given her. «And I think you are very sweet, Three. Considerate.»

«Aha, thanks. But enough about me, you now.» Sybil shifted the topic away from herself, unsure of what she could say about it any longer. «What have you been up to today, before you ran into me?»

«Well, I woke up late, by accident. Looked around a bit like I have… a few times a week, then I saw a train, and some octolings. And a phone.»

Sybil wasn’t sure she understood everything Chihiro had said— especially since she spoke faster now— but she tried to keep up with what she was saying.

«A train and octolings and a phone?» Sybil repeated. She was almost positive Chihiro was describing the Central Station, but three octolings? _A different group of test subjects than Lace and Tide, or…?_

Chihiro nodded. «Yes. Three octolings. I do not know who they are, though I followed one of them into the tunnels earlier. She was kind of, hmm…»

She said something that Sybil didn’t understand, and when Sybil tilted her head in confusion, Chihiro paused and raised a finger to her mouth as if in thought. Sybil watched as Chihiro’s face lit up, and it was easy to pinpoint the exact moment an idea occurred to her.

She lifted her left arm, letting it move in a wave-like motion as she gestured toward it with her right hand. «Her arm, it was like this. And inky.»

Oh. _Oh. Oh jeez._ «I know of her,» Sybil said. «You followed her?»

«Yeah. She barely looked at me. She was carrying a thing.»

«A thing?»

«Yes, a thing. Big, large blades on top. She had it when she was with the other octolings.»

«Oh! That is not a thing, that is a thang. Subjects get them after doing a certain amount of tests,» Sybil explained. Chihiro looked a little lost, and Sybil grasped at the fabric of her shorts, unsure of how to explain it. «It’s— I don’t know. I think it’s a bit hard to explain, but Lace and Tide do tests, and they already had one thang.»

«Lace and Tide?»

«Oh, right, those are the names of my friends that you saw. At least, I think those were my friends. I haven’t seen many others around before, so, I’m guessing it was them?»

«Oh. I see.» Sybil watched as Chihiro visibly stiffened, the yellow at the ends of her tentacles becoming more prominent. She wasn’t sure how to respond to the sudden change in tone — _did saying their names upset her, somehow?_ — but Sybil realized in the moment that she had never given Chihiro her own name either.

«And my name is Sybil. You can call me that. Or Three, if you really want to keep calling me that.»

Chihiro gave a small, half-hearted smile. Sybil had a feeling that she was still dealing with whatever seemed to be bugging her. «That is a nice name,» she said quietly after a few moments that felt far too long.

Sybil wasn’t sure what to do or say; maybe she should be the one to ask what was on Chihiro’s mind this time around?

Or would that be too invasive, or maybe even considered prying or nosy?

Well, Chihiro had done it for her, offering to listen to what pulled on Sybil’s shoulders, so maybe it wouldn’t be too bad to offer the same—

«My name is Chihiro, but my friends call me Chip.»

… _Wait, what?_

Sybil stared, dumbfounded and unsure of what to do or say. _Chip? Like, the same Chip Marina asked me about, and the same Chip that Lace seemed upset about a few weeks ago? The very same Chip? Or is that a coincidence, since nicknames seem to be a popular thing in the domes?_

Sybil realized she was staring and blinked, waving her hands in front of her. «Sorry, I got lost in my thoughts.»

It wasn’t a lie, really, but it still felt a bit dishonest.

_Oh my cod wait that means I just talked about my crush to my crush’s sister who attacked her? This is weird. This is so, so weird._

But she wasn’t entirely sure what to make of the situation. Chihiro — _Chip_ — had told Sybil only minutes ago that she had lost some of her memories. So she might not have remembered attacking her. Or maybe she had been controlled, somehow?

Either way, Sybil felt immensely awkward now, and it wasn’t any secret to her that something was bugging Chip too.

«You, ah… said there was an octoling?» Sybil asked.

«Oh, yeah. If you follow the trail, you might be able to see where she walked. Her arm, it was dripping ink. Maybe it’s still there.»

Sybil nodded and stood up, stretching with a quiet wince. «It was nice to see you again, Chihir— Chip,» she said, watching as the other octoling stood up. «Maybe I’ll see you again soon?»

Chip nodded with a small smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. «I think I’d like that, Sybil.»

Hearing her actual name sounded a little foreign coming from Chip, though it wasn’t unwelcome. Sybil gave a wave and started following Chip’s ink marks backwards as Chip went her own separate way, further into the maze-like tunnels of the metro.

As Sybil walked, she stared down at her shoes, watching as the lights trailed and reflected on the unpolished tiled floor. Her thoughts raced as she idly followed Chip’s trail.

Sybil felt wary about Chip now, of course, but from both of their interactions she didn’t seem like a bad person. Then again, Lace had known Chip for her whole life and thought the same, but if Chip didn’t even remember those things, then…?

_Augh, this is so_ complicated _now._ Sybil kicked a nearby piece of rubble, watching as it clattered and skipped ahead in the dim tunnel. She figured it would be best to tell Lace and see what she made of it all, even if it _definitely_ wasn’t something she was looking forward to.

There was also Marina. She knew who Chip was too, and she expected that she had made it out okay with Lace. Did Marina know something about it…?

…No, that didn’t make sense. If Marina was in on some supposed plot that Chip could have made to attack Lace while escaping, why would she openly talk about a different outcome? And in front of _Agent Three,_ of all people? Marina must not have known, considering she genuinely thought Chip would have made it out with Lace.

_Ugh, I wish Lace remembered Marina. Then maybe we could all work together to figure out what we know as a group? Lace was always way better at reading people or getting a feeling for situations like this…_

Sybil sighed and kicked the piece of debris again, and watched as it tumbled and rolled next to a bit of bright ink on the floor. Her ears perked up and she walked faster, poking her head down the tunnel. Drops of marbled, bright blue ink were scattered about on the ground in what vaguely resembled a line.

Sybil sent a glance back toward where Chip’s ink trail led before turning back in the other direction.

_Is following this a good idea…? Maybe I should_ not _be trying to put myself into extra danger when I already got hurt once and had to stop coming out here for almost a whole month._

She shifted on her feet, weighing her options. _Play it safe and turn back? Risk it and see if I can find any useful information?_ She looked down at her hands, tipping them up and down as if they were an actual scale as she weighed her options.

Speaking with Chip had already given her so much to talk about when she returned back to the apartment, even if she wasn’t looking forward to it. The chance of following the scary woman Lace warned her about, though… she was obviously some sort of employee — _didn’t Lace call her an assistant at some point? —_ so if Sybil could potentially get into some sort of restricted area, she could only imagine the possibilities of what information she could find.

“Following after the scary lady it is, then,” she said out loud, following the puddles of ink on the ground with a determined stride.

* * *

When Sybil finally caught up with the woman — which wasn’t very hard, considering Sybil was fairly light on her feet — she trailed behind the older octoling quietly. The back of her coat was embroidered with what Sybil assumed was the Kamabo logo, given its presence everywhere else.

From what Chip had told her, it sounded as though this woman had almost completely ignored her. That seemed to be the case here as well, but something felt off. It didn’t seem like she was being ignored, but like the woman didn’t know she was there at all.

Feeling a bit bold, Sybil jogged in front of the woman and walked directly across her line of sight. The woman didn’t acknowledge her at all, even when Sybil waved a hand right in her face. _Huh._ She returned to standing beside the woman as she walked, watching how her “arm” swirled and twisted with ink. It was almost transfixing to watch as the blues swirled and meshed together, and Sybil couldn’t help but wonder what caused that to happen in the first place. 

They eventually came to an elevator and Sybil watched as the woman pulled out a device from her pocket. It looked like the CQ-80s that Lace and Tide each had, but this one was a sleek dark blue instead of a faded off-white color. She held it against the panel and the red light swapped to green, the elevator doors opening with a quiet _whrrr_. The woman stepped inside and Sybil followed after her, standing in the furthest corner away from her in case she finally noticed her. She didn’t.

With a judder, the elevator began to rise slowly, the ascent quiet except for the sound of soft music playing from one of the speakers in the elevator.

The elevator came to a halt and Sybil’s stomach flipped at the abrupt way it stopped. She steadied herself, palm planted firmly against the wall as she recovered from the momentary feeling of vertigo. The woman stepped out of the elevator and Sybil followed after, immediately making note of how _different_ this area looked compared to the rest of the metro.

It was a lot like the place they had first woken up in, much more pristine and polished and empty. For the most part, anyway; there were still the odd crates or cracks in the foundation here or there.

Distracted by taking in the sights, Sybil was caught off guard when the woman suddenly stopped in her tracks. Sybil bumped right into her back, fear rising in her as the woman suddenly turned to face her. She made a noise, her right hand grasping at the area where her left shoulder was.

Fear rushed quickly through Sybil, thoughts of Lace’s warnings of the woman suddenly prevalent in her mind.

Without thinking, Sybil shoved her away. The woman stumbled backward, and Sybil swiftly kicked at her ankles, causing the woman to lose her balance and stumble onto the floor. The blue CQ-80 stumbled and clattered onto the floor after the woman, and Sybil scrambled to pick it up and leapt back to her feet, running back toward the elevator.

_Oh cod oh cod oh cod why did I do that? She didn’t do anything to me!_

Sybil raised the CQ-80 to the elevator panel and rushed in as the doors opened. She turned back apprehensively, expecting the woman to have chased after her, but she sat unmoving on the floor, staring blankly back at her.

The doors closed and Sybil was left alone as the elevator started shakily, descending back downward.

Sybil looked down as her shaky hands held onto the CQ-80. “Oh my cod,” she said out loud, “why did I do that? Why in cod’s name did I do that? She looked hurt and I just made it worse, I—”

Sybil paused. _Pull it together. In for four, out for eight._ She inhaled slowly and exhaled even slower, counting the moments in her head. Her hearts still beat erratically, but she felt a little more grounded for the moment.

Having this particular model of CQ-80 meant she could access areas she wouldn’t have been able to otherwise, this elevator being one of them. It had led her to what seemed like an entirely different place— though the two were still connected— so Sybil’s earlier hunch was correct. There _were_ employee-only areas.

_And now I’ll be able to get to them._ She held it up and started inspecting it. The blue color almost seemed to shine under the light, as if it were coated with a gloss finish. It seemed to be in pretty good condition, and Sybil was relieved that it didn’t seem to get damaged during the brief scuffle she had with the woman.

The elevator doors opened, and Sybil took her shaky steps out of it.

_I should definitely go back there sometime that isn’t right now._ Sybil unzipped her bag and pulled out a clipboard and a piece of paper. If she wanted to be sure she could find this place again, she needed to be sure she knew how to get back.

* * *

Kettle lounged in her chair, leaning back leisurely as she tossed a rubber ball at the wall and caught it.

She was bored. Completely and utterly _bored_. Kettle was running out of things to look for, running out of places she could circle around or climb through; she wasn’t just _stuck,_ was she? There _had_ to be a way out of this place, she was sure of that.

So how? _Where?_ What in the name of hell were she and Chip missing?

The sound of the doors opening caught her attention and she turned around to find Chip standing there, walking forward through the lobby of their residence.

«Oh my god, I summoned you.» Kettle sat up a little straighter but remained in her seat. «I was just thinking about you, y’know, and then bam! There you are, like—»

Kettle paused, noticing Chip’s tentacles were overwhelmingly yellow compared to normal. «Damn, what happened to you?» She asked as Chip walked stepped closer to the wall, picking up the Squee-G that scuttled up to her.

Chip sighed. «Nothing, just kinda tired.»

Kettle furrowed her brow with concern. «Are you sure? You seem kinda…» Kettle gestured at Chip’s tentacles with her hand, «I dunno, banana-y.»

«I look… banana-y?» Chip repeated slowly, confused.

Kettle shifted her form to look like Chip, pointing at her own tentacles, now a bright blue and yellow combination. «You look like this.»

«Oh. Sorry.» Chip shuffled her feet and drummed her fingers along the top of her Squee-G companion.

«What?» Kettle relaxed back into her seat and draped an arm over the side of her chair, giving Chip an incredulous look. «What are you apologizing for?»

Chip broke eye contact and stared down at the floor. «I don’t know.»

Kettle was about to speak up and question her again, to assure her it was fine, but Chip pardoned herself under her breath and hastily shuffled into the nearby hallway, toward the room she had claimed as her own.

Left alone where she stood, Kettle huffed through her nose indignantly. She fell back into her chair and went back to bouncing her ball against the wall.

Chip had always been weird. She _had_ been raised as a mechanic and not a soldier… The mechanics weren’t around people as often, given they were often given their own tasks to work on separately.

Despite her general quiet demeanor though, she was acting… especially weird. Like, really, _really_ weird. _Miss Chihiro Masuno_ was _not_ a good liar, either; octolings already had a lot of “tells” in their tentacle movement that soldiers were encouraged to hide, but her blue ring patterns didn’t make things any easier for her. The banana thing was teasing in good fun, but it hadn’t seemed to ease the mood.

_So she’s anxious. Or afraid. Or mad, or upset, or…? Is there something she isn’t telling me?_

Kettle threw the ball against the wall too hard without thinking and it soared over her head. She cast a glance over her shoulder and watched as it bounced wildly around the lobby of their abandoned motel shelter, and her shoulders fell back. « _Ugghhhhh,_ » she groaned aloud, her body sinking further into the chair. «I do _not_ want to get up to go get that.»


End file.
